Niels Jungbluth

Food purchases: Impacts from the consumers’ point of view investigated with a modular LCA

The goal of this research work was to assist consumers in considering environmental aspects of food consumption. A simplified, modular LCA approach has been used to evaluate the impacts from the consumers’ point of view. Comparative LCA’s have been calculated for five single aspects of decisions: type of agricultural practice, origin, packaging material, type of preservation, and consumption. The inventory for one module includes the environmental impacts related to one particular product characteristic. The modular LCA allows one to investigate the trade-offs among different decision parameters. It could be shown that most of the decision parameters might have an influence on the overall impact of a vegetable product. Greenhouse production and vegetables transported by air cause the highest surplus environmental impact. For meat products, the agricultural production determines the overall environmental impact. The total impact for vegetable or meat purchases may vary by a factor of eight or two-and-a-half. Different suggestions for consumers have been ranked according to the variation of average impacts, due to a marginal change of behaviour. Avoiding air-transported food products leads to the highest decrease of environmental impacts.

Guidelines for consistent reporting of exchanges/to nature within life cycle inventories (LCI)

Data availability and data quality are still critical factors for successful LCA work. The SETAC-Europe LCA Working Group ‘Data Availability and Data Quality’ has therefore focused on ongoing developments toward a common data exchange format, public databases and accepted quality measures to find science-based solutions than can be widely accepted. A necessary prerequisite for the free flow and exchange of life cycle inventory (LCI) data and the comparability of LCIs is the consistent definition, nomenclature, and use of inventory parameters. This is the main subject of the subgroup ‘Recommended List of Exchanges’ that presents its results and findings here:•Rigid parameter lists for LCIs are not practical; especially, compulsory lists of measurements for all inventories are counterproductive. Instead, practitioners should be obliged to give the rationale for their scientific choice of selected and omitted parameters. The standardized (not: mandatory!) parameter list established by the subgroup can help to facilitate this.•The standardized nomenclature of LCI parameters and the standardized list of measurement bases (units) for these parameters need not be appliedinternally (e.g. in LCA software), but should be adhered to inexternal communications (data for publication and exchange). Deviations need to be clearly stated.•Sum parameters may or may not overlap - misinterpretations in either direction introduce a bias of unknown significance in the subsequent life cycle impact assessments (LCIA). The only person who can discriminate unambiguously is the practitioner who measures or calculates such values. Therefore, a clear statement of independence or overlap is necessary for every sum parameter reported.•Sum parameters should be only used when the group of emissions as such is measured. Individually measured emission parameters should not be hidden in group or sum parameters.•Problematic substances (such as carcinogens, ozone depleting agents and the like) maynever be obscured in group emissions (together with less harmful substances or with substances of different environmental impact), butmust be determined and reported individually, as mentioned in paragraph 3.3 of this article.•Mass and energy balances should be carried out on a unit process level. Mass balances should be done on the level of the entire mass flow in a process as well as on the level of individual chemical elements.•Whenever possible, practitioners should try to fill data gaps with their knowledge of analogous processes, environmental expert judgements, mass balance calculations, worst case assumptions or similar estimation procedures.

Life Cycle Assessment of Photovoltaics; Update of the ecoinvent Database

Recently, the data for photovoltaics in the ecoinvent database have been updated on behalf of the European Photovoltaics Industry Association and the Swiss Federal Authority for Energy. Data have been collected in this project directly from manufacturers and were provided by other research projects. LCA studies from different authors are considered for the assessment. The information is used to elaborate a life cycle inventory from cradle to grave for the PV electricity production in 3kWp plants in the year 2005. The inventories cover mono- and polycrystalline cells, amorphous and ribbon-silicon, CdTe and CIS thin film cells. Environmental impacts due to the infrastructure for all production stages and the effluents from wafer production are also considered. The ecoinvent database is used as background database. Results from the LCA study are presented, comparing different types of cells and analysing also the electricity production in a range of different countries. It is also discussed how the environmental impacts of photovoltaics have been reduced over the last 15 years, using the CED indicator. The consistent and coherent LCI datasets for basic processes make it easier to perform LCA studies, and increase the credibility and acceptance of the life cycle results. The content of the PV LCI datasets is made publicly available via the website www.ecoinvent.org for ecoinvent members.

SENSE tool: easy-to-use web-based tool to calculate food product environmental impact

PurposeThe purpose of the European SENSE project was to define an integral system to assess and communicate the environmental impacts of food products and to develop a web-based tool for Small and Medium size Enterprises (SMEs). The tool has been tested in salmon, beef-and-dairy, and fruit juice production sectors.MethodsThe SENSE project has evaluated several existing methodologies for environmental impact assessment over the life cycle including also social aspects, in order to deliver a new integral system for the environmental and social assessment of agricultural and aquaculture food products.Results and discussionThe system includes a standardization of a data gathering system, a selection of relevant key environmental performance indicators for food supply chains and a common methodology to perform simplified life cycle impact assessment. The results are based on collected information on the use of resources and emissions generated along the supply chain of food or drink products. The main result is a web-based software tool that is based on a summation of the partial impacts of the different steps in food supply chains. In this software, different actors in the supply chain can enter their own data and link them to the data of other companies. The results obtained in the tool could be used for at least six different approaches: (i) environmental impact assessment of the product, (ii) food chain hot spot identification, (iii) comparison of hypothetical or real improvement scenarios, (iv) assessment of the environmental impact development over the years, (v) benchmarking opportunity for the companies, and (vi) a business to business communication strategy. The scientific robustness of the tool has been tested comparing the obtained results with the same analysis with commercial software.ConclusionsThe SENSE tool is a simplified tool designed for food and drink SMEs to assess their sustainability on their own. This cannot be fully compared to a complete LCA study. The testing with SMEs showed that they need additional support for filling in the questionnaires correctly and interpret the results. The simplified evaluation of environmental impacts based on a life cycle approach could lead to benefits to SMEs within the food industry. The future application and development of the tool will be focused on adapting the tool to the Product Environmental Footprint initiative requirements and self-assessment opportunities.

45th Discussion forum on LCA—environmentally extended input–output analysis and LCA, September 15, 2011, Berne, Switzerland

The discussion forum on life cycle assessment (LCA) on September 15, 2011, aimed at summarizing recent environmentally extended input–output analysis (EE-IOA) and the combination with LCA for the computation of environmental impact of imports. Input–output tables (IOT) represent the financial flows in a country or economic regions. Extending IOT with information on emissions and resource uses allows for the analysis of environmental impacts due to production and consumption activities in a country. This instrument is called EE-IOA. It enables the analysis of total environmental impacts of countries or economic regions. The combination with trade statistics and LCA was presented as an alternative to multiregional input–output models for determining environmental impacts of imports over the whole life cycle. The 45th LCA forum gathered several international speakers who provided a broad and qualified view on the topic. The theoretical background, results for different countries and regions, uncertainties, and possible improvement options for EE-IOA were discussed. The following main conclusions were drawn at the end of the discussion forum: EE-IOA is a useful instrument for analyzing the total environmental impacts of countries and the main drivers of environmental impacts. As a next important step, the participants would like to see an increase in user friendliness of EE-IOA combined with LCA, e.g., by harmonizing data, data formats, and classifications.

Environmental impacts of food purchases investigated in a modular LCA

The environmental impacts caused by different types of consumers while purchasing food products were investigated in a diary study and assessed with a modular LCA approach. This research shows, in collaboration with a group of psychologists, the ecological, economic, and cognitive restrictions and options for an ecological orientation of food purchases. The extent of environmental impacts of food purchases depends on various factors, for example, agricultural technique, transport distance, packaging or the consumption phase. It is not easy for consumers or even for experts to account for these impacts. The analysis made it possible to show the influence of different product characteristics within the total environmental impact of meat and vegetable purchases. The predicted more ecological types of consumers caused lower environmental impacts than the so-called „anti-ecologists“. The life-cycle-inventory considers all environmental impacts related to a particular consumer decision. The environmental impacts are evaluated with the new Eco-indicator 99. This simplified LCA method allows investigating the trade-offs among different decision characteristics. It can be shown that most of the decision parameters, such as origin, production method, type of conservation, might have an influence on the overall impacts of a vegetable product. Greenhouse production and products transported by air cause the highest surplus environmental impact. The agricultural production determines the overall environmental impacts for meat products.

Life cycle assessment of a detailed dairy processing model and recommendations for the allocation to single products

PurposeThis study analyses the environmental impacts referring to dairy products and to the operation of a dairy. The study aims to better understand different process stages in a dairy operation. This analysis can be used to improve the flows of energy, water, and materials in the dairy operation. The results are also used to suggest an improved allocation model for assigning the impacts of operation to single dairy products.MethodsThe analysis is based on a detailed, product-specific model calculation for the use of energy, water, and chemicals for more than 40 subprocesses of a dairy operation. This model has been used to elaborate the life cycle inventory for a detailed life cycle assessment study. The environmental impacts are analyzed from cradle to gate including and excluding the raw milk input. The environmental impacts are assessed with the midpoint indicators suggested by the International Reference Life Cycle Data System. Finally, results of this study are compared with an allocation model recommended for life cycle assessment (LCA) studies on milk products.Results and discussionThe analysis of the model dairy shows that raw milk production has the main impact in all categories. Consumer packaging has the second biggest impact in many categories. The detailed dairy processing model allows the assignment of inputs and outputs for each subprocess to single dairy products and thus avoids allocation largely. The analysis of inputs to different dairy products per kilogram shows that ultra-high-temperature (UHT)-processed milk uses more chemicals for cleaning compared to the other products. Cream uses more electricity and heat compared to UHT milk and to yogurt.ConclusionsA detailed discussion shows the overlaps and differences found for the allocation of inputs to the milk processing to final dairy products. Allocation models for different types of inputs are partly confirmed by the detailed theoretical model used for this LCA. The allocation of chemicals, steam, and electricity to single products can be improved based on the detailed dairy model developed in this study.

LCA of mobility solutions: approaches and findings—66th LCA forum, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich, 30 August, 2017

LCA of mobility solutions : approaches and findings—66th LCA forum, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich, 30 August, 2017

49th Discussion forum on LCA—sustainable consumption patterns—September 18, 2012, Zurich, Switzerland

There are different ways and strategies to reduce the environmental impacts caused today. One starting point for reducing the environmental impacts of today is the private consumption. Finally, all goods and services provided in a country contribute to fulfil the needs and demands of consumers. Several national and international initiatives therefore aim for a considerable reduction of the environmental impacts of consumption patterns. The 49th LCA Discussion Forum analysed the present consumption patterns of households and their consequent environmental impacts. Based on this, potentials for a reduction of the environmental impacts were identified and discussed. In this context, the possible applications, advantages and drawbacks of the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology were analysed. National and international speakers provided qualified insights on the topic. The 49th Discussion Forum concentrated on different aspects of sustainable consumption patterns. The focus lay on private households and the environmental impacts caused by their consumption patterns. In the first session, the idea of the “2000-Watt society” was introduced as an example of a concept of a “sustainable lifestyle”. Another way of analysing the total impacts is the consumption perspective introduced in a second presentation. Based on an analysis of environmental impacts due to final demand of Swiss households, different measures for a reduction of environmental impacts were proposed and analysed. The second session examined similar activities in Germany. The short presentations covered the communication of LCA results. The third session focused on web-based eco-calculators. In the last session, two scientific inputs were given on the modelling of household consumption patterns and on the impact of rebound effects on the environmental impact of private consumption. The most important consumption domains are nutrition, mobility and energy use in households. Apart from different modelling approaches and boundary conditions, the majority of the presentations showed that today’s consumption patterns in Switzerland and Germany are far away from a sustainable level. Considerable reduction measures are needed in order to reach this goal. Eco-calculators and similar tools provide an effective way to raise customer awareness. In general, it is very important to communicate LCA results in a simple, clear and transparent way.

Environmental labelling of green electricity with LCA key parameter models

Since the opening of European electricity markets, companies are launching green electricity products. In Switzerland the privately initiated eco-label “naturemade star” ensures the environmental and ecological quality of electricity from renewable energy sources on a local scale and from a life cycle perspective. For the life cycle perspective, a simplified and partly site-specific life cycle assessment (LCA) is applied using the Eco-indicator 99 (Hierachist perspective) impact assessment method. In a first step, detailed LCAs case studies are made for power plants and technologies that are candidates for the „naturemade star“ label. They allow identifying technology-specific parameters that dominate the outcome of the LCA and for which data are available for the owner or operator of the power plant at issue. Based on this knowledge, key parameter models for photovoltaic, wind and hydroelectric power and electricity from biogas have been established on a spreadsheet-basis. With the help of the parameter models, operators of power plants can carry out the required LCA within a few hours. At the same time, they can check whether the plant fulfils the “naturemade star” threshold or not, which has been set to 50% of the environmental impact of a gas combined cycle power plant. Within a few months since the introduction of the labelling scheme, companies successfully applied the parameter models on nearly 50 photovoltaic and on several hydroelectric power plants. LCA is, in combination with other tools, a useful method for the definition of standards for environmental labelling of green electricity. Introduction Since the opening of European electricity markets, companies are launching so called “green” electricity products. Therefore, in several countries different criteria exist how to define and label “green electricity”, as the product itself has no specific green characteristics. In Switzerland, the privately initiated eco-label “naturemade star” ensures the environmental and ecological quality of electricity from renewable energy sources on a local and regional scale as well as from a life cycle perspective. Method Global and local criteria are used within the certification scheme for electricity from renewable resources with the level naturemade star. Local criteria are specific for every type of electricity production. Hydro power plants, i.e. have to fulfil certain ecological criteria for the amount of by-passed water. The global criterion, with one threshold for all systems, is based on life cycle assessment (LCA) case studies. Fig. 1 shows the decision tree for the labelling of electricity and the role of LCA in this scheme. A second, less stringent label is naturemade basic that is used for all types of electricity production with the main criterion that it is based on renewable energy carriers. 1 See information for the “Verein fur Umweltgerechte Elektrizitat (VUE)” (Association for environmental sound electricity) on http://www.naturemade.org for details. The association is formed by representatives of electricity companies and environmental NGO’s. Key parameter models 2 local critera fulfilled? global criteron fulfilled? Data input: Plant parameters LCI data & impact assessment methods Ecoindicator 99 Points (H) Examination of plant-specific, local criteria