Life Cycle Assessment in the Agri-food Sector: Case Studies, Methodological Issues and Best Practices

The book presents an overview of the International practices and state-of-the-art of LCA studies in the agri-food sector, both in terms of adopted methodologies and application to particular products; the final purpose is to characterise and put order within the methodological issues connected to some important agri-food products (wine, olive oil, cereals and derived products, meat and fruit) and also defining practical guidelines for the implementation of LCAs in this particular sector. The first chapter entails an overview of the application of LCA to the food sector, the role of the different actors of the food supply chain and the methodological issues at a general level. The other chapters, each with a particular reference to the main foods of the five sectors under study, have a common structure which entails the review of LCA case studies of such agri-food products, the methodological issues, the ways with which they have been faced and the suggestion of practical guidelines.