Carbon Footprint and Carbon Sink of a Local Italian Dairy Supply Chain
2024
Chiara Rossi | Giampiero Grossi | Nicola Lacetera | Andrea Vitali
The dairy industry’s contribution to global warming has been thoroughly examined. However, it is important to raise public awareness of emission hotspots and the possibility of mitigation in dairy supply chains. This study assessed the Carbon Footprint (CF) of five dairy products through a cradle-to-grave Life Cycle Assessment approach and evaluated the carbon sink potential of some practices. The functional units were 1 kg of fresh raw milk, yogurt, fresh cheese, mozzarella cheese, and aged cheese. The data collected were related to an extensive dairy farm, a cheese-factory, two markets, a delivery service, and a court of consumers. The CFs were 4.39, 5.10, 9.82, 8.40, and 15.34 kg CO<sub>2</sub> eq. for fresh raw milk, yogurt, mozzarella cheese, fresh cheese, and aged cheese, respectively. The hotspots of the dairy supply chain considered herein refer to farm activities and energy consumption, whereas conservative agriculture practices and rotational grazing sequestered 1.60 ± 0.80 kg CO<sub>2</sub> eq. per kg of dairy product consumed. The CF was reduced by 0.14 kg CO<sub>2</sub> eq. for 1 kg of dairy product delivered at home compared to direct purchasing at a market. The carbon sink capacity of dairy farms appeared as a primary mean for mitigating climate change in the dairy supply chain.
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