Coopetition and transparency as strategic pillars on the agri-food and forestry system

This study aimed to analyze the factors of transparency and coopetition in Portuguese agri-food supply chain management, in relation to value creation. The Delphi method was applied to explore the future of the Portuguese agri-food sector over a 10-year time frame (2017-2027). Given the research problem, the Delphi method was chosen as the most appropriate tool to identify and anticipate forecast trends regarding the importance of coopetition and transparency as strategic factors. Three rounds of questionnaires were conducted and analyzed to gather opinions, judgments, and comments from a panel of experts. The findings indicate that it is viable to implement transparency and coopetition strategies that promote access to the “truth” — understood as a set of processes — within each food value chain. This trend reached a consensus rate of 88.6% among the experts, with the responses converging around level 4 on a five-point Likert scale. The development of an industry “transparency manual,” supported by different stakeholders, also emerged as a relevant trend, with an 88.9% likelihood of being implemented during the studied period. As for research limitations, it would be important to compare these conclusions with other agri-food contexts regarding coopetition and transparency, and to gather managers' opinions on how to apply such strategies without negatively impacting business performance or profit margins. This research is particularly valuable as it represents the first study in Portugal to apply the Delphi methodology in order to understand the influence of coopetition and transparency strategies as tools to be implemented by all agri-food actors.Keywords: Agri-food systems, Coopetition, Supply Chain Management, TransparencyDOI: https://doi.org/10.54663/2182-9306.2025.SpecialIssueMBP.213-231