Driving the Ecological Transition of Agriculture through Voluntary Certification of Environmental Impacts: An Exploratory Literature Review on the Olive-Oil Sector

Aya Rezazga, Carlos Ruiz, Giuseppe Montanaro, Giacomo Falcone and Georgios Koubouris ()
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Aya Rezazga: Institute of Olive Tree, Subtropical Crops and Viticulture (ELGO-DIMITRA), Leoforos Karamanli 167, GR-73100 Chania, Greece
Carlos Ruiz: SEO/BirdLife, GEOLIT, Parque Científico y Tecnológico, Manzana 11, C/Sierra Morena, Complejo Tecnológico de Servicios Avanzados, Primera Planta, Local 1.1, 23620 Mengíbar, Jaén, Spain
Giuseppe Montanaro: Dipartimento delle Culture Europee e del Mediterraneo: Architettura, Ambiente, Patrimoni Culturali, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, 85100 Potenza, Italy
Giacomo Falcone: Department of Agriculture (AGRARIA), Mediterranean University of Reggio Calabria, Feo di Vito, 89122 Reggio Calabria, Italy
Georgios Koubouris: Institute of Olive Tree, Subtropical Crops and Viticulture (ELGO-DIMITRA), Leoforos Karamanli 167, GR-73100 Chania, Greece

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 3, 1-34

Abstract: Human population growth has resulted in increased food consumption, followed by agrifood production intensification. Human activities have a significant impact on the environment, causing, among other things, air and water pollution and biodiversity degradation. In an international context where there is strong concern about environmental issues, it is also necessary to direct food production towards more sustainable models. In this context, the use of frameworks for certifying the environmental footprint of agrifood products can be a lever to promote sustainable production and consumption. The objective of this paper is to explore the opportunities for certifying the environmental footprint of products, focusing in particular on some of the main environmental claims: global warming, water depletion, and biodiversity loss. The olive sector was selected as a case study since it is the major tree crop in the Mediterranean countries, and it has strong impacts on human health and the environment. We employed a literature review in the SCOPUS database and the knowledge of experts in the main environmental certification sectors. The study revealed the possibility of adopting various mitigation strategies and improving environmental performance, while also pursuing certain market objectives related to certified products.

Keywords: greenhouse gases; climate change; carbon footprint; water footprint; biodiversity; life-cycle assessment; environmental product declaration (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
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