Life cycle assessment (LCA) of dairy processing industry: A case study of North India

The environmental performance of cow milk produced in a conventional semi-intensive system was assessed using a cradle-to-farm gate attributional life cycle assessment. The impacts of 1 kg FPCM—fat and protein corrected milk were obtained considering six midpoint impact categories from the ReCiPe 2016 method: climate change (CC), terrestrial acidification (TA), freshwater eutrophication (FE), land use (LU), water consumption (WC), and fossil resource scarcity (FRS). The modeling of the product system and calculating the environmental impacts considered the use of SimaPro™ software. Enteric methane and nitrogen emissions and inputs for feeding animals (fertilization for pasture production, use of seed in corn crops, and milk replacer in calves feed) were the main contributors to impacts in milk production in most categories. In addition, the indirect energy use and wastewater generation in milking and milk cooling also were relevant. Literature-based strategies are suggested to mitigate the identified environmental impacts to achieve the best environmental performance without decreasing technical and quality milk production. We emphasize the importance of improving productivity per milk cow, knowing the origin of the supply chain inputs, and using it efficiently to produce animal feeds as the main strategies to improve milk's environmental performance. Changes in allocation methods did not substantially differ in impact categories. Sensitivity analysis foregrounds the consistency of results and conclusions of the current study despite the uncertainties associated with methodological choices, simplifications, suppositions, and the use and adaptation of international databases.

/pdf/environmental-life-cycle-assessment-of-cow-milk-in-a-4amkjxwc8m.pdf

Environmental life cycle assessment of cow milk in a conventional semi-intensive Brazilian production system.

Intensive confinement (IC) systems for dairying have become widespread during the last decades. However, potential advantages of alternative systems such as full-grazing (FG) or integrated dairy / cash-crop (IFG) systems with regards to better provision of ecosystem services are widely discussed. To investigate performance and environmental impacts, we compared four prevailing dairy systems using an on-farm research study. The farm types differed in their share of pasture access and quantity of resource inputs: (i) an IC with a high import of supplements and mineral fertilizers; (ii) a semi-confinement (SC) with daytime pasture access during summer and moderate import of supplementary feeds representing the base-line scenario; (iii) a FG based on grazed seeded grass-clover swards with no purchased N-fertilizers and low quantities of supplementary feeds; and (iv) an IFG comparable to FG but based on grass-clover leys integrated in a cash-crop rotation. Results revealed highest milk productivity (16 t energy-corrected-milk (ECM) ha-1) and farm-N-balance (230 kg N ha-1) in IC; however, the highest product carbon footprint (PCF; 1.2 CO2eq kg ECM-1) and highest N-footprint (13 g N kg ECM-1) were found in the baseline system SC. The FG and IFG revealed on average similar forage dry matter yields (10-11 t DM ha-1) at similar crude protein and net-energy-lactation ratios per kg DM-intake compared to the IC and SC. The PCF in FG were comparable to IC (0.9 vs. 1.1 kg CO2eq kg ECM-1) but at a lower N-footprint (9 vs. 12 g N kg ECM-1). However, despite low measured N-losses in the FG system, the farm-N-surplus was exceeded by 90 kg N ha-1. A further reduction was only possible in the IFG (50 kg N ha-1) by accounting for a potential N-carry-over from N-rich plant residues to the cash-crop unit, leading to the lowest PCF (0.6 kg CO2eq kg ECM-1) for the IFG, with still moderate milk yield levels (~10 500 kg ECM ha-1). According to this bottom-up approach based on field data, improved integrated grazing systems could provide an important opportunity to increase the ecosystem services from dairy farming, operating with land use efficiencies similar to IC.

/pdf/toward-specialized-or-integrated-systems-in-northwest-europe-2ttsmc8wac.pdf

Toward Specialized or Integrated Systems in Northwest Europe: On-Farm Eco-Efficiency of Dairy Farming in Germany

An analysis of Brazilian raw cow milk production systems and environmental product declarations of whole milk

Although mountain dairy cattle farming systems are pivotal for the economy, as well as for social and environmental aspects. They significantly contribute to the rural development which is currently strongly prioritized in the common EU agricultural policy, at the same time they are also increasingly criticized for having relatively high environmental impacts per kg of product, such as greenhouse gas emissions. Consequently, the aim of this study was to assess and compare the environmental efficiency of 2 common alpine dairy farming systems, with focus on the effects of grazing, considering the seasonal variability in feeding at individual cow level and farm management over a 3-year period. This study focuses on alpine farming systems but can be considered to represent well other topographically disadvantaged mountain areas. An intensively managed and globally dominating production system (high-input), aiming at high milk yield through relatively intensive feeding and the use of the high-yielding dual-purpose Simmental cattle, permanently confined in stables, was compared with a forage-based production system (low-input), based on seasonal grazing and the use of the autochthonous dual-purpose breed Tyrolean Grey. For the present analysis, a data set with information on feed intake and diet composition as well as animal productivity at individual cow level, and farm management data based on multiyear data recording was used. Four impact categories were quantified for 3 consecutive years: Global Warming Potential (GWP 

Effect of management system and dietary seasonal variability on environmental efficiency and human net food supply of mountain dairy farming systems

A life cycle assessment study of dairy farms in northern Germany: The influence of performance parameters on environmental efficiency.

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A life cycle assessment study of dairy farms in northern Germany: The influence of performance parameters on environmental efficiency.