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UNESCO Chair in Life Cycle and Climate Change
AGRICULTURE AND FOOD LIFE CYCLE RESEARCH The food system contributes significantly to global greenhouse (GHG) emissions at all stages in its life cycle, from the farming process and its inputs, through to manufacture, distribution, refrigeration, retailing, food preparation in the home and waste disposal. On average the agricultural stage is the single biggest GHG emitter, while meat and dairy products are the most GHG-intensive food types. While there are no studies that quantify GHG emissions arising from the entire global food chain, there have been estimates of GHGs attributable to global agricultural production. The IPCC estimates agriculture’s direct impacts to stand at about 10– 12% of global emissions; this excludes emissions resulting from fuel use, fertiliser production and agriculturally induced land use change (Smith et al., 2007). The figure rises to up to 30% when additional emissions from fuel use, fertiliser production and agriculturally induced land use change are included; land use change alone accounts for 6–17% (Bellarby et al., 2008). One regional analysis for Europe finds that food accounts for 31% of the EU-25’s total GHG
impacts, with a further 9% arising from the hotel and restaurants sector (European Commission, 2006). At the national level, developed country studies find food consumption contributes between 15% and 28% to overall national emissions (Garnett, T. Where are the best opportunities for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the food system (including the food chain)? Food Policy (2010)). Over the last two decades the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology has been developed and applied in the food sector to quantify environmental impacts and assist decision making. In recent years, LCA in the agri-food sector has developed rapidly, in particular for sustainability assessments of agricultural systems and their products, and for guiding consumers toward more sustainable foodconsumption patterns (e.g., via eco-labelling). As much as ever there is a need for a complementary focus on the environmental impact per unit of food produced including the whole production chain and taking into account global effects of different systems for food provision and consumption patterns. The LCA method allows for comparisons between systems and for the identification of hotspots of environmental impacts that could be subject to mitigation.
HAproWINE - Integrated Waste Management and Life Cycle Assessment in the wine industry (2010-2013) “From waste to high-value products” HAproWINE is a European LIFE+ funded project which main objective is to contribute to sustainable development within the wine sector in the Autonomous Region of Castilla y León, in Spain. One of the objectives of HAprowine is to identify and promote the synthesis of high added-value compounds that can be obtained from the different wine waste streams. As a result, tests are being undertaken by the partnership to extract biopolymers from wine waste.
Life cycle assessment at crianza wine production in La Rioja, Spain (2005) The aim of this study, funded by LIFE SINERGIA, was twofold: to identify the most critical life cycle stages of an aged Spanish wine from the point of view of the associated environmental impacts and to compare its environmental performance with that of other wines and beers for which comparable information could be found in the scientific literature. All the product’s life cycle stages were accounted for, namely: grapes cultivation (viticulture), wine making and bottling, distribution and sales, and disposal of empty bottles. The outcomes of the project were used for the La Rioja´s government to acquire direct knowledge on this methodology and its use on decision-making processes to minimize environmental impact, as well as to identify the processes that can be improved in the production phase.
Pig production in Spain (2005)
The aim of the project was to assess the pig production in Spain (the second pig producer in Europe with ca. 19% of the pigs, after Germany) through extensive expert interviews and review of existing official statistics. The biggest farms operating either in “independent, closed-cycle” systems (system 1) or in multi-phases production systems (system 2), were the most competitive ones, and those where marginal increases in Spanish pig production will most likely take place. Differences in production efficiencies and feedstuff composition were identified in these two production systems.
Poultry´s carbon footprint (2012) The primary aim of this study is to calculate the carbon footprint of 5 different types of product’s poultry produced by the company SADA P.A. CATALUNYA S.A. The study is based on LCA methodology (“business to business”), thus takes into account the entire meat chicken production cycle, from grandparent stock, hatcheries, broiler farms and processing plants, to the distribution and marketing of the final product. GrupoSada, Nutreco’s poultry division in Spain, which focuses its activities on the complete management of the entire meat chicken production cycle, will be able to understand where its most significant environmental impacts occur, as well as to begin discerning where it could make the biggest difference to reduce these impacts.
Projects related to LCA and packaging on the food sector include:
- CICLOPLAST “Life Cycle Analysis of different supermarket bags” (2008). - “SIM. Participation in the Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment of European fruit and vegetable logistics (2006 and 2009)” - “Participation in the critical review panel of the LCA of two packaging alternatives for baby food produced by Nestlé (2007). - “Comparative LCA for locally produced diesel and biodiesel from used cooking oils” (SESCO European Plan, European Comission) (2002-2006).
Contact UNESCO Chair in Life Cycle and Climate Change Escola Superior de Comerç InternacionalUniversitat Pompeu Fabra (ESCI-UPF) Passeig Pujades 1, E-08003 Barcelona, España Tel. (+34) 93 295 4710 Fax. (+34) 93 295 4720 unescochair@esci.es www.unescochair.esci.es
Dr. Pere Fullana
Dra.Cristina Gazulla
Director
Head of Research Line
is Spanish delegate for the ISO 14000
M.Sc in Environmental Science and Bachelor of Environmental Science by the UAB, currently completing her PhD thesis. She works as Assistant- Director at the UNESCO Chair in Life Cycle and Climate Change and she is the head of the construction and ecolabels research line. She has undertaken over 25 research studies on Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), ecodesign, green purchasing and eco-labelling. She has actively worked in the construction sector, being a member of the Spanish Normalization Technical Committee AEN/CTN 198 “Sustainability on Construction Works” and the Advisory Board Secretary of the Environmental Product Declaration system operated by CAATEEB. Further to this, she has authored over 20 publications.
series of standards. He is editor for the International Journal of LCA (IJLCA), former Chair of the SETAC Europe LCA Steering Committee and member of the International Life Cycle Board of the UNEP/SETAC Life Cycle Initiative. He has recently taken part as member in the development of the GHG Protocol Product Standard. Dr. Fullana has participated in more than 20 EU funded projects and 150 national research studies in environmental management, LCA, ecodesign, environmental labelling and clean technologies. He has published the UNEP book: “Communication of Life Cycle Information in the Building and Energy Sectors”.