Ranking the obstacles of green supply chain management using fuzzy approaches of TOPSIS and DEMATEL with a case study in a pharmaceutical industry

The aim of this study is to analyse and prioritise the obstacles of green supply chain management (GSCM) in the pharmaceutical industry. For this purpose, the obstacles of achieving GSCM have been identified and ranked via fuzzy TOPSIS and DEMATEL approaches. Statistical population consisted of 155 managers, employees and customers of Vetaque Pharmacy Company. Fuzzy DEMATEL technique has been employed for prioritising the obstacles and identifying their causalities. Findings indicate the first to third priorities as the lack of environmental knowledge; unbelief about environmental advantages and green production; and lack of government support in policy making consistent with the environment. The applied fuzzy DEMATEL approach resulted in segmenting obstacles into some meaningful portions in order to effectively facilitate decision making on prioritising obstacles for improvement.