Abstract
This study deals with the environmental impact assessment resulting from the cultivation and processing of a protected designation of origin product, namely the “Currants of Vostizza.” Currants are dried ripe fruits of the vine plants. The cultivation of the currant has a long history in Greece and has played a key role in the development of the country. The present study aims to quantify the life-cycle environmental impacts and highlight the potential options for improving both the cultivation and processing of the product. Production inventory data were collected via the use of a questionnaire applied to farmers, while processing data were collected from a major processing and exporting company. The impact assessment results reveal that processing of the currants is the dominant life-cycle stage in terms of environmental impact, owing to the use of fossil-based electricity contributing to all of the impact categories, ranging from 68% contribution to photochemical oxidation down to 12% contribution to eutrophication, followed by packaging cardboard and ammonia nitrate used as fertilizer, ranging from 3% to 25% contribution to all impact categories.
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The authors wish to thank the PES Cooperation for providing the data for the study presented in this paper.
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Vantarakis, G.C., Abeliotis, K. & Karathanos, V.T. Environmental impact assessment of protected designation of origin (PDO) foods: the case of Vostizza Corinthian currants in Greece. Euro-Mediterr J Environ Integr 7, 131–140 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41207-022-00297-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s41207-022-00297-4