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In this paper we present findings from a research project that aimed to identify the perceived importance of sustainability issues among the stakeholders in a developing agricultural food supply chain, the AgriMax project. We discuss the identified relationships between the sustainability issues to assess the similarities and differences between the cognitive maps of key stakeholders. AgriMax is an innovative project with the goal of increasing sustainability in the European Union by using crops and food processing residues to make high-value bio-based products. Thus, it is important to understand how stakeholders in this supply chain perceive sustainability issues as they influence the decision-making processes and consequently the success of the project. We studied stakeholder perceptions about sustainability issues and elicited cognitive models. We elicited stakeholders' cognitive models using a mixed method approach, using cognitive mapping based on survey and interview data collections. We then compared and contrasted the maps using both qualitative and quantitative approaches. We found that innovation, research and development were the most central sustainability issues for participants in our study. Perhaps the most interesting finding was that the issue of demand for the bio-based products did not appear among the top two economic issues in any of the fourteen cognitive maps even though 43% of the survey respondents identified this issue as very important. Thus we found that the diversity among the cognitive models could potentially influence sustainability performance of the supply chain. The implications for research and practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]