Ethics, Sustainability and Logistics in Agricultural and Agri-Food Economics Research

The work analyzes the changes in agri-food system, with the advent of logistics management of the flow of goods and information along the food supply chain. Continues with the analysis of agri-food functions and responsibilities towards society. This field of research has been widely explored in recent years, following the development of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) certification in agribusiness. The analysis starts by examining the coherence of the ethical basis of human choices in a homo oeconomicus framework, where social relationships are merely exploitable activities. CSR development is then studied in the light of the new stakeholder theory for firms. With reference to sustainable development, the main fields of economic research and the most important goals achieved are examined. The analysis ends with some remarks on the methodological perspectives of agricultural economics research, with reference to the arguments discussed here.