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

GROUP 1, SESSION A: ANIMAL PRODUCTION SYSTEMS 8 th Int. Conference on LCA in the
Agri-Food Sector, 1-4 Oct 2012
8. Environmental impact of beef – role of slaughtering, meat
processing and transport
Johanna Mieleitner * , Martina Alig, Florian Grandl, Thomas Nemecek, Gérard Gaillard
Agroscope Reckenholz-Tänikon Research Station ART, CH-8046 Zurich, Switzerland, Corresponding
author. E-mail: johanna.mieleitner@art.admin.ch
Environmental impact of meat production is widely discussed and of increasing importance to customers and
stakeholders. To find mitigation strategies it is important to identify important processes in the whole production
chain from the agricultural stage up to the retail store. Several studies found that the environmental
impact of meat is dominated by animal production (Roy et al. 2012, Foster et al. 2006). But is this also the
case if meat products are transported over longer distances? Knowledge about the role of the processes after
the animal production stage is important, especially when comparing domestic production with imports.
The aim of this study is to assess the environmental impact of beef produced in Switzerland and to compare
it with beef imported from Germany and Brazil. Emphasis is set on the role of the processes after the animal
production stage: slaughtering, meat processing and transport. The life cycle of beef is analysed from cradle
to the sales point and the functional unit is 1 kg of meat ready for sale (packed). The agricultural phase is
described by Alig et al. (2012). For slaughtering, meat processing and transport data from industry (meat
production and retail business) and from literature are used.
The environmental impact of beef produced and sold in Switzerland is dominated by animal production,
which is responsible for over 80% of all investigated environmental impacts. The stages after animal production
account for around 15% of the impact categories 'non-renewable energy demand' and 'blue water use'
and for less than 5% of all other environmental impacts (Fig. 1). The most important process within these
post-agricultural stages is slaughtering and meat processing which contributes up to 15% to the total impact.
The transport of living animals and of processed meat and the distribution centres contribute less than 2% to
all impact categories (Fig. 1).
Beef imported from Germany is also dominated by animal production. Due to longer distances, transport has
a slightly higher impact but still contributes less than 5% to all impacts (Fig. 2).
Beef imported from Brazil by ship is dominated by the agricultural production for most environmental impacts,
despite the higher impact of transport, as the impact of transport by freight ship is relatively low. This
is different for beef imported by aircraft. Here the transport from Brazil to Europe has an important impact
(Fig. 2). E.g. it accounts for around 15% of the global warming potential and over 80% of the non-renewable
energy demand.
Looking at the environmental impact of slaughtering and meat processing, the main contribution to most
impact categories comes from direct energy use. Also important factors are packaging film, water use, sewage
treatment and waste disposal.
In conclusion, animal production dominates the production chain for beef produced in Switzerland and imported
from Germany and Brazil. An exception is the import of beef by aircraft from Brazil. Animal production
is therefore the most important starting-point for mitigation strategies. However it is also important to
reduce the environmental impact of the post-agricultural stages. All stakeholders along the whole production
chain have to contribute to maximise the overall mitigation potential. Transport by airplane can have a high
impact and should be avoided. Another important factor is the use of non-renewable energy during slaughtering
and meat processing which could for example be reduced by replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy
sources. Acknowledgement: These research results were developed by ART with the support of COOP.
References
Alig, M., Grandl, F., Mieleitner, J., Nemecek, T., 2012. Animal and environmental friendly beef production:
a conflict? Abstract, 8 th International conference on LCA in the Agri-Food sector.
Foster, C., Green, K., Bleda, M., Dewick, P., Evans, B., Flynn, A., Mylan, J., 2006. Environmental impacts
of food production and consumption. A Final Report to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs, Manchester Business School, Defra, London.
Roy, P., Orikasa, T., Thammawong, M., Nakamura, N., Xu, Q., Shiina, T., 2012. Life cycle of meats: An
opportunity to abate the greenhouse gas emission from meat industry in Japan. Journal of Environmental
Management 93, 218-224.
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