Life Cycle Assessment Project for the Brazilian Egg Industry

FEATURED APPLICATION: The topic addressed is highly relevant to the Brazilian Egg Production Industry. SIMPLE SUMMARY: Promoting sustainability in food production has become fundamental to meeting the demands of the market, mainly because it presents a trend of expansion around the world. Life cycle assessment is a recognized methodology for providing quantitative information on environmental impacts caused throughout the production cycle in different categories. With the aim of providing transparent information to Brazilian producers and consumers about the impacts generated in egg production, this review presents the LCA methodology addressed in international studies based on the ISO 14040 and 14044:2006 standards. The results generally point to feed production and supply as the main point of impact on production, covering all impact categories, including Acidification, Eutrophication, Fossil Fuel Depletion, Global Warming Potential, Ozone Layer Depletion and Ecotoxicity. After quantifying emissions, it becomes possible to estimate the value of emissions per unit of eggs produced. The results obtained during the analysis will be able to promote good environmental practices and new ecological strategies, including animal welfare, food safety, the rational use of natural resources, the reduction in gas emissions and the generation of data on future scenarios. ABSTRACT: Brazil is among the ten largest egg producers in the world. The domestic consumption of Brazilian eggs is 99.6%, the rest being exported to more than 82 countries, with an expectation of growth in the foreign market. The Brazilian egg industry has evolved considerably in recent decades, incorporating new technologies and smart practices. However, there is no assessment of how production could become more sustainable over the years. The LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) approach aims to recognize the polluting potential, identify the environmental impacts generated and reduce these impacts throughout production. On a global scale, researchers approach LCA as a constructive and quantitative technique, and there is great interest in implementing an LCA for the Brazilian egg production sector. With the aim of introducing the LCA methodology to the Brazilian egg industry, this review presents the concept and accounting structure of LCA through LCI (Life Cycle Inventory) and LCIA (Life Cycle Impact Assessment), based on the ISO 14040 and 14044:2006 standards, to quantify the environmental performance of production and identify areas for future improvement, thus promoting the environmental footprint of the Brazilian egg industry.