This master’s thesis developed a system dynamics simulation model of a food redistribution organisation and assessed its applicability for planning and evaluating such organisations. The model was designed at the level of a single organisation, based on logistical and accounting data from the social enterprise Etri, national statistical indicators, and qualitative insights obtained from a living lab environment. It integrates the supply of surplus food, demand for donations and sales, workforce availability, logistical, distribution and processing capacities, and the associated costs. The model was evaluated using scenario analysis of urban and rural contexts. Simulations were conducted over a 24-month period, and the results were expressed in terms of the quantity of redistributed food, the number of donated meals, total costs, and financial deficit. The results indicate that redistribution performance depends on workforce structure, the balance between donation and sales demand, the nutritional quality of incoming food, and the spatial dispersion of suppliers. Under the given assumptions, urban scenarios proved to be more financially sustainable, whereas transferring the model to a rural context requires additional financial support. Volunteer labour reduced costs but increased output variability, while storage capacity did not emerge as a key system constraint in the simulated scenarios. The developed model contributes to a better understanding of systemic interdependencies and trade-offs within food redistribution organisations and enables scenario-based comparison of organisational decisions as a decision-support tool for planning and evaluation of such systems.
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