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

GROUP 6, SESSION B: METHODS, TOOLS, DATABASES 8 th Int. Conference on LCA in the
Agri-Food Sector, 1-4 Oct 2012
175. Establishing a reference carbon calculator and policy options to
promote low carbon farming practices in the EU
Hanna L. Tuomisto * , Vincenzo Angileri, Camillo De Camillis, Adrian Leip, Nathan Pelletier, Fabien Ramos,
Palle Haastrup
European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC), Institute for Environment and Sustainability, Via Enrico
Fermi 2749, 21027 Ispra, Italy, Corresponding author. E-mail: hanna.tuomisto@jrc.ec.europa.eu
The direct emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) from agriculture accounted for around 10% of total European
Union (EU) emissions in 2010. It has been estimated that in the United Kingdom the agri-food sector as
whole contributes around 19% of GHG emissions when life cycle emissions are taken into account. To reduce
the farming-related GHG emissions appropriate policy instruments and supporting tools that promote
low carbon farming practices must be developed. This paper describes an on-going project that aims at assessing
the policy options to promote low carbon farming practices in the EU. The project includes: i) a review
of existing climate-related certification and labelling schemes in agri-food sector, ii) the development
of a user friendly open-source carbon calculator suitable for assessing the life cycle GHG emissions from
different types of farming systems across the whole EU, and iii) the design/assessment of policy options for
promoting low carbon farming practices. The carbon calculator quantifies direct and indirect GHG emissions
according to the general-level and sector-specific international standards and guidelines on Life Cycle Assessment
and carbon footprint. In addition to the GHG emission quantification, the tool also proposes mitigation
options and sequestration actions suitable for single farms. The recommendations of the specific farming
practices are based on emission reduction potential, potential leakage effects, inherent costs of implementation,
and impact on other environmental issues. The practicality and acceptability of the carbon calculator
has been tested on around a hundred farms across the EU. Finally, a range of options for making widespread
use of the carbon calculator will be outlined, including e.g. public or private certification schemes, incentive
payments to farmers, and legal obligations for farmers to reduce GHG emissions.
References
European Environment Agency, Approximate EU GHG inventory, Early estimates for 2010, in EEA Technical
report No 11/2011.
Garnett, T., Cooking up a storm – Food, greenhouse gas emissions and our changing climate. 2008. Food
Climate Research Network, Centre for Environmental Strategy, University of Surrey. p. 155.
European Commission, Joint Research Centre, International Reference Life Cycle Data System (ILCD)
Handbook – General guide for Life Cycle Assessment – Detailed guidance (2010) Luxembourg: Publication
Office of the European Union.
921