LCA Food 2012 in Saint Malo, France! - Manifestations et colloques ...

PARALLEL SESSION 3C: SHEEP AND DAIRY PRODUCTION SYSTEMS 8 th Int. Conference on LCA in the
Agri-Food Sector, 1-4 Oct 2012
4. Discussion
The results show similarity with other studies in the UK, e.g. Taylor et al., (2010) found the carbon footprint
of Welsh lamb to be 24 kg CO2e/kg. The results are very sensitive to the enteric methane emission factor and
method of calculation. This is under active research in work to improve the UK GHG inventory for agriculture
(http://www.ghgplatform.org.uk/). Applying a Tier 2 approach will lead to different outcomes from a
Tier 1 approach, which assumes the same emission rate for all sizes and diets, which is far from reality is
sheep production. Any change in the structure of the industry that maintains output, but at different altitudes
is clearly constrained by land availability. The potential for improvement is substantial, but depends on a
synergistic combination of improvements in animal health, management and breeding. These are often only
enabled by a positive economic climate, to which government policies often play a major role.
5. Conclusion
The systems approach to LCA is a powerful tool for assessing the complexity that is the UK sheep industry.
It allows exploration of alternative approaches. Potential for improvement through technical and managerial
changes exists and could reduce burdens significantly. Changes in the structure of the industry could have
profound impacts on land occupation, particularly the balance between good and poor quality land.
6. Acknowledgments
The authors thank the UK Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for funding and Dr
Stewart Ledgard of AgResearch, NZ for helpful comments on the model.
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