a life-cycle approach to measuring the sustainability of new zealand’s primary production: a...
TRANSCRIPT
A life-cycle approach to measuring the sustainability of New Zealand’s primary production: a carbon footprint of beef/sheep
Amélie Goldberg, MEnvStud
School of Geography, Environment and Earth Sciences
Presentation Outline
Purpose and Background
Aims and Objectives
Literature Review
Methodology
Next steps…
Research Implications
Background
Trade liberalisation and globalisation
Lengthening supply chains & ‘big box’ retail
‘Food miles’ concerns in UK/ USA
Internalising externalities through reducing information asymmetries
Threat or opportunity for New Zealand?
Purpose
Consumer ability to make better choices
Encourage foresight in the agro-food sector
Producer knowledge and information for responding to international concerns
Environmental quality Climate change mitigation
Short - term outcomes
Long - term outcomes
Aim
How well are carbon emissions of the beef/sheep sector managed, from production through to consumption?
What are the opportunities and threats that arise from accounting for carbon in the agro-food sector?
Objectives
1. Create a carbon footprint of sheep or beef produced and consumed in New Zealand
2. Compare footprints among farms and categories of farms (e.g. conventional, organic and integrated)
3. Establish whether comparable profiles exist in the UK, and if so, how they differ
4. Explore the perceptions of the agro-food sector and the public service about the opportunities and threats to NZ.
Literature Review 1: International Policy
CarbonUK and Carbon Trust
Tesco carbon labelling of food
GHG accounting worldwide
Literature Review 2: New Zealand Context
Patterson 1984: top-down approach Wells 2001: on-farm production Saunders et al. 2006: UK focus (food miles) Stancu & Smith 2007: sector’s environmental
knowledge Information gap in the literature: no complete
carbon footprint exists
Methodology
Mixed methods: quantitative and qualitative
Method A: construct a carbon footprint of beef/sheep
Method B: comparison with UK & NZ studies
Method C: perceptions of carbon footprints through semi-structured interviews
Methodology: Method A (Objectives 1-2)
Objectives 1 and 2: create a carbon footprint of beef/sheep meat for comparison and evaluation
Method 1: a life cycle assessment (LCA) focusing on energy and carbon emissions, using a case study with a meat exporter and ~ 35 farms (conventional, organic, and ‘integrated management practices’).
Method A: Carbon Footprint
Energy and carbon focused life cycle assessment (LCA)
An extension of GHG inventory and accounting systems
Applying Wells’ (2001) methodology ISO 14040 & 14044: Framework and Guidelines
(internationally recognised)
ISO 14040 Life Cycle Assessment Framework
Direct applications: Product
development and improvement
Strategic planning Public policy
making Marketing Benchmarking Eco-labels and
product declarations
Goal and scope definition
Inventory analysis
Impact assessment
Interpretation
Production
Processing/ Packaging
Wholesale
Retail /Export
Household
International markets
Key
Road/rail freight energy
Energy in shipping
Energy in process
LCA of a Food SystemAdapted from Patterson (1984)
Method B: Literature Review (Obj. 2-3)
Review similar studies in t the UK and New Zealand
Establish whether comparable profiles have been developed
Analyse how these profiles differ
Methodology: Method C (Obj. 4)
Undertake semi-structured interviews with: key informants in the beef/sheep supply
chain, including freight operators and retail associations
government officials from different ministries responsible for sustainable agriculture and trade issues.
Next steps…
Doing the Fieldwork! Interviewee recruitment Methodological issues
Use of software? SimaPro, GaBI Combination of bottom-up and top-down data
sources?
Difficulty in obtaining data: freight (tonne km of product movements), retail and consumer food shopping patterns
Research Implications
Fills research gaps, especially once products have left farm gate - to NZ consumer’s plate
Although New Zealand production systems may be more carbon efficient than the UK, there is a risk to New Zealand exports if we do not account for emissions (in part due to UK media)
NZ agro-food sector needs to show leadership and foresight in managing their environmental reputation - such as through carbon footprints
Research Implications
Stimulate discussion on NZ ‘food miles’ and how supply chains, delivery patterns & shopping behaviour can be modified to decarbonise our food systems
Creating footprints enables: NZ agro-food sector to respond to information requests
from international markets Consumers to vote with their $ and choose low-carbon
products - through carbon labelling
ReferencesBarber, A., & Pellow, G. (2005). Energy use and efficiency measures for the New Zealand dairy farming industry: Prepared
by AgriLink New Zealand for the Climate Change Office.
Bolland, J., Weir, D., & Vincent, M. (2005). Development of a New Zealand national freight matrix (No. 283 Land Transport New Zealand Research Report). Wellington: Booz Allen Hamilton (NZ) Ltd.
Cavana, R. Y., Harrison, I. G., Heffernan, F. E. B., & Kissling, C. C. (1997). Freight transport in New Zealand - Working Paper 2/97. Wellington: Graduate School of Business and Government Management, Victoria University of Wellington.
Fuels & Energy Management Group. (2000). Road transport sector energy demand and CO2 output - projections and analysis of reduction strategies. Wellington: Ministry of Transport.
Lovell-Smith, J. E. R., & Baldwin, A. J. (1988). Energy trends in the New Zealand diary industry. New Zealand Journal of Diary Science and Technology, 23, 239-255.
Patterson, M. G. (1984). Energy use in the New Zealand Food System. Energy in Agriculture, 3, 289-304.
Saunders, C., Barber, A., & Taylor, G. (2006). Food Miles- Comparative Energy/Emissions Performance of New Zealand's Agriculture Industry: Lincoln University.
Smith, A., Watkiss, P., Tweedle, G., McKinnon, A., Hunt, A., Trevelen, C., et al. (2005). The Validity of Food Miles as an Indicator of Sustainable Development: DEFRA.
Stancu, C., & Smith, A. (2007, Feb 21-23). Making sustainable links: the well-being of NZ exports in a changing climate. Paper presented at the 2nd International Conference of Sustainability and Engineering Science, Auckland, NZ.
Wells, C. (2001). Total energy indicators of agricultural sustainability: dairy farming case study: University of Otago.
