Identification of environmental impact hot spots in traditional food production lines

Osojnik Črnivec, Ilja Gasan (author), Marinšek-Logar, Romana (author)

Evaluating the environmental impact of agricultural food production systems is a relatively recent research activity and the present methods for assessing the environmental impact associated with production-consumption systems are input-autput accounting, ecological footprint analysis, life cycle assessment, financial evaluation of environmental externalities, farm cost and food miles. Complete environmental impact analysies require considerable amounts of data and time and are very likely to be expensive. Preliminary identification of the most-evident environmental hot spots is beneficial and aiding the determination of the analysis scope and goal and in setting the borders of the studied system. In the present study a reconstruction of the production schemes was peprformed and the identification of evident environmental impact hot spots was performed expert-wise for four selected model food products (hard coocked cheese, dry-cured ham, beer and culiflower), traditional in Europe. The preliminary hot spot identification was pperformed specifically for a conceptual life cycle assessment (LCA) technique in prosecution. In our opinion, these results can also be employed as a basis for many other environmental impact assessment approaches.

• Language: English
• Keywords: traditional food products, environment, environmental impact, EUrope
• Work type: Not categorized
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: BF - Biotechnical Faculty
• Year: 2009
• Number of pages: Str. 39-46
• Numbering: Letn. 94, št. 1
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-17702
• UDC: 664
• ISSN on article: 1581-9175
• COBISS.SI-ID: 2539912
• Publication date in RUL: 11.07.2014

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Acta agriculturae Slovenica
• Shortened title: Acta agric. Slov.
• Publisher: Biotehniška fakulteta
• ISSN: 1581-9175
• COBISS.SI-ID: 213840640

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian

Abstract

Celostno ocenjevanje vplivov na okolje v kmetijski proizvodnji živil je sorazmerno mlada raziskovalna dejavnost. Trenutne metode, ki omogočajo ocenjevanje vpliva na okolje v sistemih proizvodnje in nadaljnega ravnanja s proizvodom, so t.i. input-autput računovodstvo, analize ekoloških sledi, ocenjevanje življenskega cikla, finančno ocenjevanje zunanjih vplivov na okolje, okoljska bilanca kmetije in obremenjevanje okolja zaradi transporta. Podrobne analize vpliva na okolje so drage, prav tako pa za izvedbo potrebujemo precej časa in specifičnih podatkov. S preliminarno identifikacijo kritičnih točk potencialnega obremenjevanja okolja pridobimo rezultate, ki so nam v pomoč pri določevanju obsega in ciljev analize in pri postavljanju mej preučevanega sistema. V tej študiji smo identificiarali postopke štirih modelnih proizvodnih linijah evropskih tradicionalnih živil (sir, pršut, pivo, cvetača) in na podlagi strokovnega znanja opravili izbiro kritičnih okoljskih točk. Pripravljen pregled smo opravili zaradi nadaljne uporabe v komercialni študiji ocenjevanja življenskega cikla. Menimo, da je opisani postopek mogoče uporabiti tudi za druge pristope presoje vplivov na okolje.

• Keywords: tradicionalna živila, okolje, vpliv na okolje, Evropa