Environmental Assessment and Management in the Food Industry
Life Cycle Assessment and Related Approaches

U Sonesson (Edited by), J Berlin (Edited by), F Ziegler (Edited by)

9780081014738, Elsevier Science

Paperback / softback, published 19 August 2016

432 pages
23.4 x 15.6 x 2.7 cm, 0.61 kg

Life cycle assessment (LCA) of production and processing in the food industry is an important tool for improving sustainability. Environmental assessment and management in the food industry reviews the advantages, challenges and different applications of LCA and related methods for environmental assessment, as well as key aspects of environmental management in this industry sector.

Part one discusses the environmental impact of food production and processing, addressing issues such as nutrient management and water efficiency in agriculture. Chapters in Part two cover LCA methodology and challenges, with chapters focusing on different food industry sectors such as crop production, livestock and aquaculture. Part three addresses the applications of LCA and related approaches in the food industry, with chapters covering combining LCA with economic tools, ecodesign of food products and footprinting methods of assessment, among other topics. The final part of the book concentrates on environmental management in the food industry, including contributions on training, eco-labelling and establishing management systems.

With its international team of editors and contributors, Environmental assessment and management in the food industry is an essential reference for anyone involved in environmental management in the food industry, and for those with an academic interest in sustainable food production.

Part 1 Environmental impacts of food production and processing: Improving nutrient management in agriculture to reduce eutrophication, acidification and climate change
Increasing the efficiency of water use in crop production. Part 2 Life cycle assessment of food production and processing: Life cycle assessment (LCA) of food production and processing: An introduction
Methodology for life cycle assessment
Challenges relating to data and system delimitation in life cycle assessments of food products
Challenges in assessing the environmental impacts of crop production and horticulture
Complexities in assessing the environmental impacts of livestock products
Challenges in assessing the environmental impacts of aquaculture and fisheries. Part 3 Current and future applications of life cycle assessment and related approaches: Towards sustainable industrial food production using life cycle assessment approaches
Addressing land use and ecotoxicological impacts in life-cycle assessments of food production technologies
Combining life-cycle assessment of food products with economic tools
Inclusion of social aspects in life cycle assessment of food
Ecodesign of food products
Footprinting methods for assessment of the environmental impacts of food production and processing
Carbon footprinting and carbon labelling of food products
Sustainability indicators for the food supply chain. Part 4 Environmental management in the food industry: Establishing an environmental management system in the food industry
Environmental training for the food industry
Eco-labelling of agricultural food products.

Subject Areas: Sustainable agriculture [TVF], Food & beverage technology [TDCT], Food security & supply [RNFF], The environment [RN]