Introduction: Considering the high importance of rice product in consumption basket of domestic consumers as well as its strategic role in Iran's economy, it is inevitable to pay attention to the type of supply and distribution as well as the design and formulation of the comprehensive structure of the value chain of this product in the country. Given the concerned approach, this study aimed at identifying, analyzing and investigating the current scientific situation and links related to rice value chains in the production hub provinces  including Guilan province to complete and develop or create an efficient value chain of rice product leading to increasing efficiency and competitiveness and following appropriate implementation solutions for the existing problems.
Materials and Methods: Considering the importance of rice as one of the most important products in the consumption basket of consumers in Iran, the present study focused on examining and choosing an optimal business model in the rice value chain in Guilan province. The statistical population of the study included active organizations, including all links of the chain and involved and related organizations. In addition, documentary and field methods were used in the form of questionnaires to collect the required information, and briefing sessions were held in a collaborative manner with 15 experts, specialists and the professionals related to rice production, export and industry in Guilan province. For this purpose, Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was used to evaluate pairwise comparisons and Expert Choice (EC) software was used for its analysis. It should be mentioned that in order to reach the desired goal and determine the best business model based on the rice value chain in the province, four main criteria (economic, socio-cultural, environmental and structural) and 21 sub criteria were applied.
Results and Discussion: The study results showed that among the four criteria used, the economic criterion was the most important according to the respondents, and as the most important criterion with a weight of 0.578, it played the main role in choosing the best rice value chain model. The results also showed that if a decision was made based on each of the four main criteria including economic, socio-cultural, environmental and structural criteria components (each one alone), the market maker model would be the most appropriate rice value chain model in the province. Finally, considering all the four main criteria and the sub-criteria including 21 components, among the four business models in the value chain, the ‘market maker’ model with a final weight of 0.510 was the best structure for the rice value chain in the province and the ‘integrated’ model with a final weight of 0.309 was placed in the second priority; then, ‘layer player’ and ‘orchestrator’ models were placed in the third and fourth priorities with the final weights of 0.193 and 0.059, respectively.
Conclusion and Suggestions: The study results showed that among the four business models in the rice value chain in Guilan province, the ‘market maker’ model was ranked first as the best option with the highest relative weight (0.510) and the ‘orchestrator’ model was the least important option with a relative weight of 0.059. Therefore, it is suggested that in order to make the marketing system efficient as well as the stability of rice production and export, attention to the prioritization in the value chain should be emphasized by the planners and policy makers of the province. Therefore, the establishment of international trade center in Guilan province as well as supportive measures towards such an expertise center can help to organize the rice market in the Guilan province and consequently, in the whole country.