Abstract
The Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) of products and services is a tool created to assess the environmental impact of a product, process, services or system by taking into account every step in its life cycle. Mainly used for the analysis of environmental impacts of products and industrial services, a growing number of studies incorporating LCA are focusing on the agri-food production sector. At a time when the agri-food statutory framework must take into account the environmental impacts of the activities that it encompasses, it seems worthwhile to question whether or not LCA may contribute to a sustainable agri-food statutory framework, especially by promoting agriculture more friendly to the environment and those who work in this area.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Andersson K (2000) LCA of food products and production systems. Int J LCA 5(4):239–248
Andersson K, Ohlsson T (1999) Including environmental aspects in production development:a case study of tomato ketchup. Lebensmitt Wissenschaft Und Technologie 32:134–141
Andersson K, Ohlsson T, Olsson P (1998) Screening Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of tomato ketchup: a case study. J Cleaner Prod 6(3–4):277–288
Antón A, Montero JI, Muñoz P (2005) LCA and tomato production in Mediterranean greenhouses. Int J Agric Resour Governance Ecol 4(2):102–112
Basset-Mens C, Van Der Werf HMG (2005) Scenario-based environmental assessment of farming systems: the case of pig production in France agriculture. Ecosyst Environ 105(1–2):127–144
Bellem G, Revéret JP et Gendron C (2005) L’analyse du cycle de vie comme outil de développement durable, Montréal, Les Cahiers de la Chaire de responsabilité sociale et de développement durable, collection recherche, No 08–2005
Bennett R, Phipps R, Strange A, Grey P (2004) Environmental and human health impacts of growing genetically modified herbicide-tolerant sugar beet: a life-cycle assessment. Plant Biotechnol J 2(4):273–278
Boy L, Racine JB, Siiriainen F (eds) (2008) Sécurité juridique et droit économique. Collection Droit/Économie international, Éditions Larcier, Bruxelles
Brentrup F, Küsters J, Kuhlmann H, Lammel J (2001) Application of the life cycle assessment methodology to agricultural production: an example of sugar beet production with different forms of nitrogen fertilizers. Eur J Agron 14(3):221–233
Carlsson-Kanyama A, Ekstrom MP, Shanahan H (2003) Food and life cycle energy inputs: consequences of diet and ways to increase efficiency. Ecol Econ 44(2–3):293–307
Cederberg C, Mattsson B (2000) Life cycle assessment of milk production: a comparison of conventional and organic farming. J Cleaner Prod 8(1):49–60
Cernea, Kudat (1997) Social assessment for better developement: case studies in Russia and Central Asia; Environmental sustainable development studies and monographs no 16; The world Bank, 207 p
Comité de l’Agriculture (2003) Élaboration d’un cadre de bonnes pratiques agricoles, Rome, FAO, 17e session, COAG 2003/6
Desjardins M (2007) Les possibilités et les limites de l’analyse du cycle de vie pour un droit de l’environnement plus cohérent et efficace. Mémoire de Maîtrise (LLM). Faculté de Droit, Université Laval, Québec
Duhaime G, Godmaire A (2002) The conditions of sustainable food security. An integrated conceptual framework. In: Duhaime G (ed) Sustainable food security in the arctic. State of knowledge, vol 52, Occasional Publications Series. University of Alberta, CCI Press and GÉTIC, Edmonton, pp 15–46
FAO (1996) Plan d’action du Sommet mondial de l’alimentation, Rome
Feinberg M, Bertail P, Tressou J, Verger P (2006) Analyse des risques alimentaires, Collection Sciences et techniques agroalimentaires. Tec et Doc, Paris
Finsterbusch K (1995) In praise of SIA, a personal review of the field of social impact assessment: feasibility, justification, history, methods and issues pp13–40, in Évaluation des impacts sociaux: vers un développement viable? sous la direction de Christine Gagnon
Hass G, Wetterich F, Geier U (2000) Framework in agriculture on the farm level. Int J LCA 5(6):345–348
Hayashi K (2005) Practical implications of functional units in Life Cycle Assessment for Horticulture: Intensiveness and Environmental Impacts. Barcelona LCM Innov Life Cycle Manage 1:368–371
Hayashi K, Gaillard G, Nemecek T (2005) Life Cycle Assessment of agricultural production systems: current issues and future perspectives. International Seminar on Technology Development for Good Agriculture Practice in Asia and Oceania, Epochal Tsukuba, 25–26 Oct, pp 98–110
Hendrickson C, Horvath A, Lave L (1998) Econonmic Input Output Models for environmental life cycle assessment; Environmental Science and Technology 32(7):184–191
Hunkeler D, Rebitzer G (2003) Life cycle costing, paving the road to sustainable development? Int J LCA 8(2):109–110
ISO 14040 Standard (1997) Environmental management systems life cycle analysis – principles and scope. International Organization for Standardization, Geneva
ISO 14041 Standard (1998) Environmental Management Systems Life Cycle Analysis – Definition of objective and field of study and inventory analysis International Organization for Standardization, Geneva
ISO 14042 Standard (2000) Environmental Management Systems Life Cycle Analysis – Assessment of Life Cycle Impact International Organization for Standardization, Geneva
ISO 14048 Standard (2000) Environmental Management Systems Life Cycle Analysis – Data Documentation Presentation International Organization for Standardization, Geneva
Jolliet O, Saadé M, Crettaz P (2005) Comprendre et réaliser un écobilan. Presses polytechniques et universitaires romandes, Lausanne
Lampron L (2005) L’encadrement juridique de la publicité et l’étiquetage écologique: Une voie vers la mise en œuvre du développement durable au Canada? Mémoire de maîtrise, Faculté de Droit de l’Université Laval, Québec
Lavallée S, Bartenstein K (2004) La régulation et l’harmonisation internationale des programmes d’écolabels sur les produits et les services. Rev internationale droit économique 1:47
Lavallée S, Normandin D (2003) La gestion du cycle de vie des produits et des services comme outil du développement durable: concepts de base, applications et incidences sur l’étiquetage et le droit de l’environnement, vol 193, Service de la formation permanente, Barreau du Québec, Les développements récents en droit de l’environnement. Édition Yvon Blais, Cowansville, p 265
Lavallée S, Plouffe S (2004) The ecolabel and sustainable development. Int J LCA 9(6):349
Maxwell S, Frankenberger TR (1992) Household food security, concepts, indicators, measurements: a technical review. UNICEF, New York
Norris GA (2001) Integrating life cycle cost analysis and LCA. Int J LCA 6(2):118–120
OCDE (2004) Agriculture et environnement: enseignements tirés de dix ans de travaux de l’OCDE. OCDE, Paris
Organic Products Regulations (2009) SOR/2009-176 June 11, 2009
Parent G (2005) La contribution juridique des accords de l’OMC à la sécurité alimentaire durable: L’exemple des produits agricoles issus des biotechnologies modernes, Thèse de Doctorat (LL.D.), Faculté de Droit, Université Laval, Québec
Parent G (sous presses) Le concept de sécurité alimentaire: Approche juridique, dans J-P Poulain. Dictionnaire des cultures et des modèles alimentaires, Presses Universitaires de France, Paris
PNUE (2005) Initiative sur le cycle de vie, PNUE/SETAC, Life Cycle Approches: the road from analysis to practice, Paris
Puppan D (2002) Environmental evaluation of biofuels. Periodica polytechnica Ser Soc Man Sci 10(1):95–116
Roy P, Nei D, Orikasa T, XU Q, Okadome H, Nakamura N, Shiina T (2009) A review of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) on some food products. J Food Eng 9:1–10
Shapiro GK (2001) Incorporating Costs in LCA. Int J LCA 6(2):121–123
Van Woerden SC (2001) The application of life cycle analysis in glasshouse horticulture, Proceedings of International Conference on LCA in Foods, Gothenburg. The Swedish Institute for Food and Biotechnology, pp 136–140
UNEP, Guidelines for Social Life Cycle Assessment of Products (ASCV), New-Yoy, UNEP, 2009 http://www.unep.fr/shared/publications/pdf/DTIx1164xPA-guidelines_sLCA.pdf
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to express their gratitude to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) for its financial assistance that has made possible this research project and the drafting of this chapter. Special thanks are also addressed to Ms. Marie-Claude Desjardins, PhD Student at the Laval University Faculty of Law, who contributed by her research to the drafting of this text, as well as Ms. Sonya Morales, PhD Student at the Laval University Faculty of Law, for her precious assistance as text editor.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Parent, G., Lavallée, S. (2011). LCA Potentials and Limits Within a Sustainable Agri-food Statutory Framework. In: Behnassi, M., Draggan, S., Yaya, S. (eds) Global Food Insecurity. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0890-7_11
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0890-7_11
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-007-0889-1
Online ISBN: 978-94-007-0890-7
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)