The academic literature related to green logistics practices (GLPs) is continuously expanding, suggesting various strategies that companies can adopt to reduce the environmental impact of logistics. These strategies depend on several factors within companies that can act as barriers or facilitators of GLPs. However, the role of external stakeholders is less explored, despite being crucial to the effective implementation of these practices. This study, therefore, integrates the existing theoretical framework with empirical evidence to provide a detailed analysis of the stakeholders involved in GLPs. Using stakeholder theory, the authors explored how principals and logistics service providers in Italy develop green logistics practices and what factors most impact their development. Several cascading effects were identified among the factors that influence the adoption of GLPs (e.g., the main economic factors are affected by external factors that, in turn, affect organizational and collaborative factors). These effects are moderated by interdependencies between primary and secondary stakeholders, most notably end consumers. This study therefore contributes to a better understanding of the motivations and patterns of adoption of GLPs by companies, highlighting the wide range of stakeholders involved and their impact through a range of influencing factors. Contractors and logistics service providers can no longer approach the adoption of GLPs as isolated companies, but only as part of a “core network of interconnected stakeholders” all involved in the adoption of green logistics practices.
