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Méité R, Bayer L, Martin M, Amon B, Uthes S. Modeling the environmental impacts of Asparagopsis as feed, a cow toilet and slurry acidification in two synthetic dairy farms. Heliyon 2024; 10:e29389. [PMID: 38694085 PMCID: PMC11058298 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e29389] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2023] [Revised: 03/22/2024] [Accepted: 04/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Intensive dairy farming, particularly enteric fermentation and manure management, is a major contributor to negative impacts on the local and global environment. A wide range of abatement measures has been proposed to reduce livestock-related emissions, yet the individual and combined effects of these innovations are often unknown. In this study, we performed an attributional life cycle assessment of three innovative measures modeled in two synthetic German dairy farm systems: Feeding of the seaweed Asparagopsis, installing an in-house cow toilet system, and performing on-field slurry acidification. These measures were modeled both individually and in combination to account for single and cumulative effects and compared to a reference scenario under current practices. Our results showed that feeding high levels of Asparagopsis and the combination of all three measures were most effective at reducing global warming potential (20-30 %), while only the latter mitigated eutrophication (6-9%) and acidification potential (14-17 %). The cow toilet required additional adapted manure management (separated storage and injection of urine) to effectively reduce eutrophication (8-10 %) and acidification potential (19-23 %) and to decrease global warming potential (3-4%) and abiotic depletion (4-5%). Slurry acidification slightly affected all considered environmental impact categories. All three measures involved trade-offs, either between LCA impact categories (global warming potential vs. abiotic depletion), the location of impacts (off- vs. on-farm), or the emission reduction in individual gases (ammonia vs. nitrous oxide). Measure combinations could compensate for the observed trade-offs. Our study highlights the potential of novel abatement measures but also shows the interdependencies of measures in different stages. This calls for a revisiting of current priorities in funding and legislation, which often focus on single objectives and measures (e.g. ammonia reduction) toward the preferential use of measures that are effective without driving trade-offs or improving resource efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- René Méité
- Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF), Eberswalder Straße 84, Müncheberg, Germany
- Albrecht Daniel Thaer-Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Sciences, Department of Agricultural Economics, Humboldt University Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Lukas Bayer
- Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF), Eberswalder Straße 84, Müncheberg, Germany
- System Dynamics Group, Department of Geography, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Michael Martin
- IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute, Valhallavägen 81, 114 28, Stockholm, Sweden
- KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Department of Sustainable Development, Environmental Science and Engineering, Teknikringen 10B, 114 28, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Barbara Amon
- Department Technology Assessment, Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy (ATB), Potsdam, Germany and University of Zielona Góra, Poland
| | - Sandra Uthes
- Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF), Eberswalder Straße 84, Müncheberg, Germany
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Bragaglio A, Romano E, Cutini M, Nannoni E, Mota-Rojas D, Claps S, De Palo P. Study on the suitability of life cycle assessment for the estimation of donkey milk environmental impact. Animal 2024; 18:101057. [PMID: 38215679 DOI: 10.1016/j.animal.2023.101057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2023] [Revised: 12/04/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/14/2024] Open
Abstract
In the last decades, western Countries increased their interest in innovative products like donkey milk and other activities carried out with donkeys (onotherapy, onotourism). Donkey milk is considered a high-added-value food and is very similar to human breast milk. It is also used as an ingredient in cosmetics. The growing public interest suggests the need for a pilot study on the sustainability of donkey milk production, according to Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) criteria. Milk was used as the Declared Functional Unit (DFU) and two different models were described, a Real Scenario Model (RSM, i.e. a farm with its declared milk yield), and an Increased Milk Production Model (IMPM, i.e., the same farm with theoretically increased milk yield). Allocation was applied both in RSM and IMPM; thus, different values of impact categories, i.e., Global Warming Potential (GWP, kg CO2 equivalents), Acidification Potential (ACP, g SO2 equivalents) and Eutrophication Potential (EUP, g PO43-) were observed. GWP improved after mass allocation and showed the lowest equivalents in IMPM, compared to economic and reference allocation criterion (P < 0.05). In RSM, allocations affected GWP in a different way: the smaller size of the DFU resulted in the largest estimation of CO2 equivalents (P < 0.05) for reference allocation, whereas the mass allocation estimates were lower than with economic allocation (P < 0.05). ACP and EUP followed the same trends. No differences were found in IMPM results across the three allocation methods used. Moreover, mass allocation values recorded in RSM did not significantly differ from IMPM. ACP and EUP of RSM improved after economic allocation, although they were less sustainable (P < 0.05) than all IMPM values and RSM equivalents after mass allocation (P < 0.05). As expected, the theoretical model with increased milk yield improved the sustainability of the system. Both scenarios were affected by allocation criteria. In RSM, the economic and mass allocations described a representative scenario where donkey meat contributed to subtracting equivalents from milk (the main product). The present paper is a pilot study estimating for the first time the environmental impact of donkey milk production, with the aim to stimulate further research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Bragaglio
- CREA Research Centre for Engineering and Agro-Food Processing, Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l'Analisi dell'Economia Agraria, Via Milano 43, 24047 Treviglio, BG, Italy
| | - Elio Romano
- CREA Research Centre for Engineering and Agro-Food Processing, Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l'Analisi dell'Economia Agraria, Via Milano 43, 24047 Treviglio, BG, Italy
| | - Maurizio Cutini
- CREA Research Centre for Engineering and Agro-Food Processing, Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l'Analisi dell'Economia Agraria, Via Milano 43, 24047 Treviglio, BG, Italy
| | - Eleonora Nannoni
- Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences (DIMVET), University of Bologna, Via Tolara di Sopra 50, 40064 Ozzano Emilia, BO, Italy.
| | - Daniel Mota-Rojas
- Departamento de Producción Agricola y Animal (DPAA), Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM), Unidad Xochimilco, Calzada del Hueso 1100, Colonia Villa Quietud, Alcaldía Coyoacán, 04960 Ciudad de Mexico, Mexico
| | - Salvatore Claps
- CREA Research Centre for Animal Production and Aquacolture, Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l'Analisi dell'Economia Agraria, S.S.7 Via Appia, 85051 Bella Muro, PZ, Italy
| | - Pasquale De Palo
- Department of Veterinary Medicine (DIMEV), University "Aldo Moro" of Bari, S.P. per Casamassima, km 3, 70010 Valenzano, BA, Italy
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Hingsamer M, Kulmer V, de Roode M, Kernitzkyi M. Environmental and socio-economic impacts of new plant breeding technologies: A case study of root chicory for inulin production. Front Genome Ed 2022; 4:919392. [PMID: 36275198 PMCID: PMC9582860 DOI: 10.3389/fgeed.2022.919392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2022] [Accepted: 08/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
In Europe, root chicory and other plants are cultivated for their prebiotic food fiber, inulin, which boosts the growth of beneficial gut bacteria and stimulates the human immune system. CHIC, a H2020 project, develops new chicory variants which produce more and reported to be healthier inulin as well as medicinal terpenes. This paper presents an environmental and socio-economic assessment of the whole value chain of the new chicory variants and their derived products using a case study based in the Netherlands. Two scenarios based on new chicory variants using new plant breeding technologies (NPBT) are analyzed and impacts thereof are compared to the reference scenario; the current commercial inulin process from conventional chicory. Both scenarios show higher inulin content, but the inulin adsorption process differs. While one aims to optimize inulin yield, the other one explores the potential of a multipurpose use, yielding inulin and health beneficial terpenes. Methodologically, we employ multi-regional input-output (MRIO) analysis to estimate additional economic benefits, added value and job creation, while by means of life cycle assessment (LCA) effects on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and primary energy demand are derived. Both methods, MRIO and LCA, are well suited to analyze the raised issues and draw on the same data. Generally, the results highlight the importance of inulin production at a national and EU-level in the reference scenario. In case of the two scenarios, we find that the related socio-economic impacts are much higher than in the reference scenario and thus highlight their ability to boost economic activity and increase competiveness of the EU, i.e. over 80% of the generated value added stays in the EU. In terms of environmental impacts, the two scenarios show lower GHG emissions and primary energy demand due to the higher efficiencies of the process in the scenarios compared to the reference inulin process. Additionally, regarding the goal of climate neutral production, we find that the majority of GHG emissions stem from the electricity mix and natural gas demand. Replacing these sources of energy with more renewable ones will contribute to this goal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Hingsamer
- Joanneum Research Forschungsgesellschaft mbH, LIFE—Institute for Climate, Energy and Society, Graz, Austria,*Correspondence: Maria Hingsamer,
| | - Veronika Kulmer
- Joanneum Research Forschungsgesellschaft mbH, LIFE—Institute for Climate, Energy and Society, Graz, Austria
| | | | - Michael Kernitzkyi
- Joanneum Research Forschungsgesellschaft mbH, LIFE—Institute for Climate, Energy and Society, Graz, Austria
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Neurophysiology of Milk Ejection and Prestimulation in Dairy Buffaloes. Animals (Basel) 2022; 12:ani12192649. [PMID: 36230390 PMCID: PMC9559521 DOI: 10.3390/ani12192649] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2022] [Revised: 09/28/2022] [Accepted: 09/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The present review aims to integrate the anatomical characteristics of the mammary gland and the neurophysiology of milk ejection to understand the milking capacity of the water buffalo. Since one of the main uses of this species is milk production, this article will analyze the controversies on the use of oxytocin as a stimulant during milking as well as the existing alternatives that farmers apply to promote correct stimulation during milk letdown. According to the available literature, the efficiency of the milking process, the quality of the milk, and the health of the animals are elements that require the consideration of species-specific characteristics to enhance the performance of buffaloes. The incorporation of technological innovations and competitive strategies could contribute to a better understanding of water buffalo in the milk industry.
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Acciaro M, Bragaglio A, Pittarello M, Marrosu GM, Sitzia M, Sanna G, Decandia M, Bagella S, Lombardi G. Spatial Distribution and Habitat Selection of Sarda Cattle in a Silvopastoral Mediterranean Area. Animals (Basel) 2022; 12:ani12091167. [PMID: 35565593 PMCID: PMC9105308 DOI: 10.3390/ani12091167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2022] [Revised: 04/16/2022] [Accepted: 04/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Silvopastoral systems support multiple uses, such as cattle grazing, timber harvesting and the provision of many ecosystem services. The management of livestock movement patterns plays a pivotal role in the sustainable use of silvopastoral systems. Uneven livestock distribution can lead to over- and under-grazed areas, negatively affecting plant and animal diversity, as well as ecosystem services. This study was conducted in a Mediterranean silvopastoral area grazed by autochthonous Sarda cattle to determine the spatial distribution and habitat selection of the cows, who were fitted with GPS tracking collars for this purpose. The total time spent by the animals in different areas was mapped to show the spatial distribution of the cattle in the landscape. Moreover, a preference index was computed for different areas and across different seasons. Overall, the areas where the animals drank and received supplementation were strongly preferred, whereas areas with predominantly rocks were strongly avoided. Grasslands were normally used in proportion to their presence in the area. Forest area was frequented by the cows more in the spring and the summer. These results, representing the first findings concerning Sarda cow grazing in silvopastoral areas, could help farmers to implement actions that help exploit the area more evenly by cows, limiting over- and under-grazing. Abstract The beef livestock system in Sardinia is based on suckler cows, often belonging to autochthonous breeds, such as the Sarda breed, and they often graze silvopastoral areas. Besides beef meat, silvopastoral systems (SPSs) provide several Ecosystem Services (ESs), such as timber provision, harvested as wood, and watershed protection. Livestock distribution is a critical factor for the sustainable use of SPSs (e.g., to avoid uneven grazing patterns) and information on patterns of spatial use are required. A study was conducted to determine: (i) the spatial distribution and (ii) the habitat selection of Sarda cattle grazing in a Mediterranean silvopastoral area. Over different seasons, 12 free-roaming adult Sarda cows were fitted with Global Positioning System (GPS) Knight tracking collars to calculate an index mapping of the incidence of livestock in the landscape (LRI) and a preference index (PI) for different areas. Since the PI data were not normally distributed, the Aligned Rank Transform (ART) procedure was used for the analysis. LRI was able to represent the spatial variability in resource utilization by livestock as a LRI map. Overall, the areas where the animals drank and received supplementation were strongly preferred by the cows, reaching PI values in the summer of 19.3 ± 4.9 (median ± interquartile range), whereas areas with predominantly rocks were strongly avoided (the worst PI value in the spring was 0.2 ± 0.6). Grasslands were, in general, used in proportion to their presence in the area, with slightly increased use in the spring (PI 1.1 ± 0.5). Forest area was avoided by cows, except in the spring when it was used in proportion to their presence in the area.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco Acciaro
- AGRIS Sardegna, S.S. Sassari-Fertilia 291, Km 18.6, 07100 Sassari, Italy; (G.M.M.); (M.S.); (G.S.); (M.D.)
- Correspondence:
| | - Andrea Bragaglio
- Dipartimento di Medicina Veterinaria, Università degli Studi di Bari Aldo Moro, sp Casamassima, Km 3, 70010 Valenzano (BA), Italy;
| | - Marco Pittarello
- Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, University of Torino, 10095 Grugliasco, Italy; (M.P.); (G.L.)
| | - Gian Marco Marrosu
- AGRIS Sardegna, S.S. Sassari-Fertilia 291, Km 18.6, 07100 Sassari, Italy; (G.M.M.); (M.S.); (G.S.); (M.D.)
| | - Maria Sitzia
- AGRIS Sardegna, S.S. Sassari-Fertilia 291, Km 18.6, 07100 Sassari, Italy; (G.M.M.); (M.S.); (G.S.); (M.D.)
| | - Gabriele Sanna
- AGRIS Sardegna, S.S. Sassari-Fertilia 291, Km 18.6, 07100 Sassari, Italy; (G.M.M.); (M.S.); (G.S.); (M.D.)
| | - Mauro Decandia
- AGRIS Sardegna, S.S. Sassari-Fertilia 291, Km 18.6, 07100 Sassari, Italy; (G.M.M.); (M.S.); (G.S.); (M.D.)
| | - Simonetta Bagella
- Dipartimento Di Chimica E Farmacia, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, Italy;
| | - Giampiero Lombardi
- Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, University of Torino, 10095 Grugliasco, Italy; (M.P.); (G.L.)
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Rodríguez Escobar MI, Cadena E, Nhu TT, Cooreman-Algoed M, De Smet S, Dewulf J. Analysis of the Cultured Meat Production System in Function of Its Environmental Footprint: Current Status, Gaps and Recommendations. Foods 2021; 10:2941. [PMID: 34945492 PMCID: PMC8701123 DOI: 10.3390/foods10122941] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2021] [Revised: 11/12/2021] [Accepted: 11/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Cultured meat has been presented as an environmentally friendlier option to conventional meat, but due to the limited data, the studies related to its performance are scarce and based on hypothetical production processes. This work provides a short literature review of the published environmental assessments of cultured meat. The main findings of this critical analysis showed that the lack of real data related to cultured meat decreased the level of accuracy of each study. The missing environmental profile of the process itself, including the proliferation and differentiation phases in bioreactors, along with key ingredients such as growth factors and other recombinant proteins, increase the difficulty of achieving reliable conclusions. In order to bridge the highlighted gaps, a complete production system is modelled and analysed from an engineering and life-cycle perspective. Furthermore, an overview of the supply chains of different products used in the process is provided, together with recommendations on how they should be considered in future life-cycle assessments. In essence, this work provides a structured pathway for upcoming consistent environmental assessments in this field, with the objective of setting the basis to understand the potential of cultured meat.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Ignacia Rodríguez Escobar
- Research Group Sustainable Systems Engineering (STEN), Department of Green Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium; (E.C.); (T.T.N.); (M.C.-A.); (J.D.)
| | - Erasmo Cadena
- Research Group Sustainable Systems Engineering (STEN), Department of Green Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium; (E.C.); (T.T.N.); (M.C.-A.); (J.D.)
| | - Trang T. Nhu
- Research Group Sustainable Systems Engineering (STEN), Department of Green Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium; (E.C.); (T.T.N.); (M.C.-A.); (J.D.)
| | - Margot Cooreman-Algoed
- Research Group Sustainable Systems Engineering (STEN), Department of Green Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium; (E.C.); (T.T.N.); (M.C.-A.); (J.D.)
| | - Stefaan De Smet
- Laboratory for Animal Nutrition and Animal Product Quality, Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium;
| | - Jo Dewulf
- Research Group Sustainable Systems Engineering (STEN), Department of Green Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium; (E.C.); (T.T.N.); (M.C.-A.); (J.D.)
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Dairy Buffalo Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Affected by a Management Choice: The Production of Wheat Crop. SUSTAINABILITY 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/su131911108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Life cycle assessment (LCA) was performed in dairy buffalo farms representative of Southern Italian farming systems, similar due to several characteristics, with the exception of wheat production. This work evaluated the impacts derived from this management choice, comparing farms with wheat crop (WWC) or not (NWC). In agreement with the literature, economic allocation was chosen as a useful strategy to attribute equivalents to by-products, i.e., culled animals; the same criterion was also adopted to assign pollutants to wheat grain, limited to WWC farms. Environmental impacts in terms of Global Warming Potential (GWP, kg CO2 eq), Acidification Potential (AC, g SO2 eq), Eutrophication Potential (EU, g PO43-eq), Agricultural Land Occupation (ALO, m2y) and Water Depletion (WD, m3) were estimated. The production of wheat crop significantly affected (p < 0.05) the Agricultural Land Occupation (ALO) category as WWC farms need adequate land. WWC farms could allow a significant reduction in eutrophication (EU) compared to NWC farms (p < 0.05).
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