System scentralizowanych dostaw w sieciach hipermarketów – korzyści i zagrożenia dla dostawców owoców i warzyw

At the beginning of hyper- and supermarkets’ presence in Poland, distribution of goods was based on direct deliveries from producers or middlemen to the specific stores. For the last few years the majority of supermarket chains have switched to supplying goods from their own or outsourced distribution centres. Central fresh food stuffs’ warehouses are based on the cross-docking system. The centralization of deliveries is perceived by fruit and vegetable producers in various ways. Cross-docking enables the supermarket chains to have full control over logistics and its safety, high availability of supply, reduction of storage space in the stores and reduction of the loss level