3. Producción

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Comparison of different methods for consideration of multifunctionality of Peruvian dairy cattle in Life Cycle Assessment
(Elsevier, 2020-10-01)
In Andean dairy systems, livestock generates a daily income through the sale of milk and cheese but also fulfils other roles which are crucial for rural livelihoods such as the contribution of protein to local diets, the provision of draught power and organic fertilizer, the reduction of economic risk and the accrual of savings. The objective of this study was to compare different approaches to cope with multifunctionality of livestock in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). Based on local data from a smallholder dairy production system in the Southern Peruvian Andes environmental impacts of 1 kg energy corrected milk (ECM) were calculated with LCA methodology considering nine livestock functions: production of dairy products (1) and meat (2) for the market, production of milk for family consumption (3) and as food for calves (4), provision of organic fertilizer (5) and draught power (6), role as savings asset (7), risk insurance (8) and part of family tradition (9). Impacts were distributed among these functions using different methodological approaches: NA, no allocation; EM, economic allocation to market products; ET, economic allocation to all livestock functions; FP, allocation according to farmers´ perception and SE, system expansion (substitution). The results varied considerably depending on the method used. 1 kg of ECM contributed to global warming with 1.65, 1.38, 1.25, 0.71 and 0.89 kg CO2-equivalents using mehods NA, EM, ET, FP and SE, respectively. Similar patterns were observed for acidification and eutrophication potentials. Enteric fermentation was the main source of greenhouse gases whereas eutrophication and acidification potentials were determined by alfalfa pasture management. The results of the study showed that: (i) LCA results are highly sensitive to the number and types of livestock functions considered and the allocation criteria applied, (ii) that the economic value of livestock functions does not necessarily reflect their importance for rural livelihoods and (iii) that the application of system expansion/substitution to livestock systems is limited due to lacking equivalency of functions and products from alternative production systems.
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Biocomposites of bio-polyethylene reinforced with a hydrothermal-alkaline sugarcane bagasse pulp and coupled with a bio-based compatibilizer
(MDPI, 2020-05-01)
Bio-polyethylene (BioPE, derived from sugarcane), sugarcane bagasse pulp, and two compatibilizers (fossil and bio-based), were used to manufacture biocomposite filaments for 3D printing. Biocomposite filaments were manufactured and characterized in detail, including measurement of water absorption, mechanical properties, thermal stability and decomposition temperature (thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA)). Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was performed to measure the glass transition temperature (Tg). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was applied to assess the fracture area of the filaments after mechanical testing. Increases of up to 10% in water absorption were measured for the samples with 40 wt% fibers and the fossil compatibilizer. The mechanical properties were improved by increasing the fraction of bagasse fibers from 0% to 20% and 40%. The suitability of the biocomposite filaments was tested for 3D printing, and some shapes were printed as demonstrators. Importantly, in a cradle-to-gate life cycle analysis of the biocomposites, we demonstrated that replacing fossil compatibilizer with a bio-based compatibilizer contributes to a reduction in CO2-eq emissions, and an increase in CO2 capture, achieving a CO2-eq storage of 2.12 kg CO2 eq/kg for the biocomposite containing 40% bagasse fibers and 6% bio-based compatibilizer.
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Reviewing environmental life cycle impacts of biobased polymers: current trends and methodological challenges
(Springer, 2020-11-01)
Purpose: The aim of this review is to evaluate previous life cycle assessment (LCA) studies of first- and second-generation bioplastics, to understand the state of the art and the main problems addressed during the development of new bioplastics. Furthermore, it provides an overview on land use change (LUC) impacts accounted for, methodologies chosen, and the results obtained. Methods: Studies related to the impact assessment of bioplastics and published between 2007 and 2018 were gathered. Five keyword strings were used to perform a wide search and select relevant LCA studies. The study aimed to analyze critical methodological aspects in LCA, in order to determine the most common choices made during biobased material analyses, as well as major limitations. Three filters were applied to select comparable studies, ending with a final number of 17 papers. Recommendations were obtained by comparing common practices performed by different authors with suggested best available practices mentioned in handbooks and guidelines. Interestingly, LUC metrics and impacts were, most of the time, neglected. Thus, a specific assessment and discussion was performed regarding the methods used to quantify LUC impacts, considering its importance during the production of biobased materials. Results and discussion: The study discussed the main environmental problems linked to the development of new biomaterials. LCA of agricultural products or systems, when compared with fossil-based counterparts, is expected to show higher environmental impacts in categories directly affected by fertilizer use, occupied and transformed land, among others. Thus, studies that included additional impact categories besides global warming (e.g., eutrophication or acidification) concluded that biobased materials present higher impacts, recommending improvements in farming practices to improve their overall environmental profile. Moreover, this review gathered methodologies used to account for LUC impacts and the results obtained. The main constraint of including LUC impacts was the lack of a standardized methodology, as well as large uncertainties in existing methodologies. Conclusions: Most studies concluded that improvements in farming practices might reduce the attributed environmental impacts with the reduction of the amount of land, fertilizer, pesticides, and water used. Studies computing LUC impacts agreed on the importance of including these impacts and concluded that greenhouse gas emissions of bioplastic production would increase, but in most cases would still be lower than the impact of their fossil-based counterparts. However, challenges remain when computing LUC impacts that need to be tackled when working with the available methodologies, including the collection of reliable inventory data (site-specific or regional data) and regionalized characterization factors.
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Life cycle assessment of bagasse fiber reinforced biocomposites
(Elsevier, 2020-06-10)
This study aims to evaluate the life cycle environmental implications of producing fiber-reinforced biocomposite pellets, compared with sugarcane- and petroleum-based polyethylene (PE) pellets. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology is used to evaluate the production of four types of pellets. LCA allows the evaluation of the benefits of improving the production of biobased materials by replacing part of the sugarcane bioPE with bagasse fibers. The functional unit selected was the production of 1 kg of plastic pellets. Primary data were collected from laboratory tests designed to obtain pulp fibers from bagasse and mix them with sugarcane bioPE. Two processes were studied to obtain fibers from bagasse: soda fractionation and hot water-soda fractionation. The results from the LCA show environmental improvements when reducing the amount of bioPE by replacing it with bagasse fibers in the categories of global warming, ozone formation, terrestrial acidification and fossil resource scarcity, when comparing to 100% sugarcane bioPE, and a reduction in global warming and fossil resource scarcity when compared to fossil-based PE. In contrast, results also indicate that there could be higher impacts in terms of ozone formation, freshwater eutrophication, and terrestrial acidification. Even though biocomposites result as a preferred option to bioPE, several challenges need to be overcome before a final recommendation is placed. The sensitivity analysis showed the importance of the energy source on the impacts of the processing of fibers. Thus, using clean energy to produce biobased materials may reduce the impacts related to the production stage. These results are intended to increase the attention of the revalorization of these residues and their application to generate more advanced materials. Further outlook should also consider a deeper evaluation of the impacts during the production of a plastic object and possible effects of the biobased materials during final disposal.
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Carbon footprint of organic coffee: Peruvian case study
(Elsevier B.V., 2024-12-01)
In Peru, organic agriculture has emerged as a promising avenue for creating prosperity through the production of premium, value-added goods. Among the array of agricultural exports from Peru, organic coffee stands out as a highly significant product, celebrated internationally for its exceptional quality. Thus, there is an opportunity to address this study from the environmental point of view by focusing on greenhouse gas emissions in coffee production and adopting the principles of a circular economy. This approach not only promises to improve farmers' overall performance but also holds the potential to mitigate the environmental repercussions related with their production processes. The aim of this research is to analyze the carbon footprint of organic coffee that is produced by small farmers who are members of a cooperative situated in the northern region of Peru. To achieve this objective, the above-mentioned environmental impact during the production of organic green coffee was calculated using the Life Cycle Assessment methodology. This research also seeks to discern about disparities between the practices of farmers who already possess their organic certification and those currently in the certification process as well as assesses the relative eco-efficiency of these production units. Besides the absence of significant differences between those who have their organic certification and those who apply organic practices in their fields but are in the process of certification, results show that the carbon footprint of 1 kg of green coffee placed in port is estimated at 0.90 kg CO2e.
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Cradle-to-Grave Environmental Analysis of an Alpaca Fiber Sweater Produced in Peru
(Elsevier B.V., 2023-12-20)
Animal fibers are an important raw material for the fashion industry but have recently been discussed due to the environmental impacts related to their production. In order to provide scientific information for decision-making in the Peruvian alpaca sector a cradle to grave carbon footprint of one (01) wear of a 100 % alpaca fiber sweater has been conducted. For the modeling of the fiber procurement stage primary data regarding livestock management and annual production parameters were obtained from interviews with 42 Peruvian alpaca herders from the main producing regions in South and Central Peru. Data for the processing stages (spinning and dyeing, knitting and weaving) were collected by means of interviews and questionnaires from three alpaca fashion companies in Arequipa and Lima. The distribution, use, and end-of-life stages were modeled with secondary data. The resulting carbon footprint of one wear of the alpaca fiber sweater is 0.449 kg CO2 equivalents (CO2e). Most emissions occur during the lifecycle stages of fiber production and distribution (70 % and 14 % of CO2e emissions, respectively). Methane emissions from enteric fermentation account for 87 % of the impact within the fiber procurement stage. The environmental impacts during the distribution stage were dominated by retailing and road transport in the destination countries and export by air and sea (53.1 % and 46.4 % of carbon emissions in this stage, respectively). Other life cycle stages were found to be less relevant emission sources. The study concluded that the main strategies for impact mitigation should focus on improving the efficiency of the fiber procurement systems. Furthermore, several knowledge gaps have been identified and should be addressed by future research regarding methane emissions associated with the main co-products of the livestock systems, ecosystem services in the Andes and especially Andean wetlands and potential mitigation strategies of greenhouse gases related to different pasture management options.
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Life cycle assessment of organic chocolate production in Peru
(Elsevier BV, 2025-12-01)
Limited studies have been conducted in Latin America related to the environmental profile of cocoa and chocolate production using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The current study conducts a cradle-to-gate LCA of the production of organic chocolate products in Peru, considering cocoa cultivation practices by a group of 21 female producers located in central Peru in the year 2022. Data were collected on-site at cultivation sites and processing plant using questionnaires with the technical staff. Beyond fossil and biogenic emissions linked to cultivation, transport of dried cocoa, and manufacturing activities at the chocolate producing plant, carbon capture on fields by cocoa and shading trees was modeled and included in the carbon balance. A total of 8 impact categories were selected, considering different environmental compartments. Results for global warming using the main scenario show a range of values from 4.33 kg CO 2 eq per kilogram of final chocolate product to 4.88 kg CO 2 eq. Most impacts are derived from the production of dry cocoa beans and, to a lesser extent, upstream sugarcane production. However, important differences were evident when the individual cocoa producers were analyzed, with agroforestry systems presenting lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions than cocoa monocrops. Regarding water scarcity, the activities at the chocolate processing plant were found to contribute more than water use at the cocoa cultivation sites. For other impact categories, toxicity emissions at the cultivation site were relatively low given the organic characteristics of the fields, which do not use conventional pesticides. The post-harvest management of the cocoa pods (i.e., composting) is a critical source of GHG emissions. Hence, adequate composting conditions maintain methane emissions low, but direct return of the pods to the field can generate a substantial increase in GHG emissions. Carbon sequestration from above ground biomass, mainly from shading and cocoa trees, appears to mitigate an important fraction of these emissions if shading is homogeneous and sufficiently dense across the fields. • A Life Cycle Assessment was conducted on the production of organic chocolate in Peru. • A group of 21 producers was sampled for organic cocoa practices in central Peru. • A full characterization of the biogenic carbon cycle in cultivation sites was modeled. • Global warming results show better results for agroforestry systems and cocoa pod husk composting practices. • Manufacturing stage impacts are dominated by water use, cooling agents and upstream sugar production.
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