LCA to Estimate the Environmental Impact of Dairy Farms: A Case Study

Sara Zanni, Mariana Roccaro, Federica Bocedi, Angelo Peli and Alessandra Bonoli
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Sara Zanni: Department of Management, University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Mariana Roccaro: Department for Life Quality Studies, University of Bologna, 47921 Rimini, Italy
Federica Bocedi: Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, 40064 Bologna, Italy
Angelo Peli: Department for Life Quality Studies, University of Bologna, 47921 Rimini, Italy
Alessandra Bonoli: Department of Civil, Chemical, Environmental and Materials Engineering (DICAM), University of Bologna, 40136 Bologna, Italy

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 10, 1-15

Abstract: Intensive farming is responsible for extreme environmental impacts under different aspects, among which global warming represents a major reason of concern. This is a quantitative problem linked to the farm size and a qualitative one, depending on farming methods and land management. The dairy sector is particularly relevant in terms of environmental impact, and new approaches to meeting sustainability goals at a global scale while meeting society’s needs are necessary. The present study was carried out to assess the environmental impact of dairy cattle farms based on a life cycle assessment (LCA) model applied to a case study. These preliminary results show the possibility of identifying the most relevant impacts in terms of supplied products, such as animal feed and plastic packaging, accounting for 19% and 15% of impacts, respectively, and processes, in terms of energy and fuel consumption, accounting for 53% of impacts overall. In particular, the local consumption of fossil fuels for operations within the farm represents the most relevant item of impact, with a small margin for improvement. On the other hand, remarkable opportunities to reduce the impact can be outlined from the perspective of stronger partnerships with suppliers to promote the circularity of packaging and the sourcing of animal feed. Future studies may include the impact of drug administration and the analysis of social aspects of LCA.

Keywords: LCA; climate change; agro-livestock sector; GHG emissions; dairy farming (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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