LAPSE:2023.26484
Published Article
LAPSE:2023.26484
Are Short Food Supply Chains More Environmentally Sustainable than Long Chains? A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of the Eco-Efficiency of Food Chains in Selected EU Countries
April 3, 2023
Abstract
Improving the eco-efficiency of food systems is one of the major global challenges faced by the modern world. Short food supply chains (SFSCs) are commonly regarded to be less harmful to the environment, among various reasons, due to their organizational distribution and thus the shortened physical distance between primary producers and final consumers. In this paper, we empirically test this hypothesis, by assessing and comparing the environmental impacts of short and long food supply chains. Based on the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach, we calculate eco-efficiency indicators for nine types of food distribution chains. The analysis is performed on a sample of 428 short and long food supply chains from six European countries. Our results indicate that, on average, long food supply chains may generate less negative environmental impacts than short chains (in terms of fossil fuel energy consumption, pollution, and GHG emissions) per kg of a given product. The values of eco-efficiency indicators display a large variability across analyzed chains, and especially across different types of SFSCs. The analysis shows that the environmental impacts of the food distribution process are not only determined by the geographical distance between producer and consumer, but depend on numerous factors, including the supply chain infrastructure.
Improving the eco-efficiency of food systems is one of the major global challenges faced by the modern world. Short food supply chains (SFSCs) are commonly regarded to be less harmful to the environment, among various reasons, due to their organizational distribution and thus the shortened physical distance between primary producers and final consumers. In this paper, we empirically test this hypothesis, by assessing and comparing the environmental impacts of short and long food supply chains. Based on the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach, we calculate eco-efficiency indicators for nine types of food distribution chains. The analysis is performed on a sample of 428 short and long food supply chains from six European countries. Our results indicate that, on average, long food supply chains may generate less negative environmental impacts than short chains (in terms of fossil fuel energy consumption, pollution, and GHG emissions) per kg of a given product. The values of eco-efficiency indicators display a large variability across analyzed chains, and especially across different types of SFSCs. The analysis shows that the environmental impacts of the food distribution process are not only determined by the geographical distance between producer and consumer, but depend on numerous factors, including the supply chain infrastructure.
Record ID
Keywords
eco-efficiency, energy consumption, environmental impact, food chain, GHG emissions, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), short food supply chains (SFSCs)
Subject
Suggested Citation
Majewski E, Komerska A, Kwiatkowski J, Malak-Rawlikowska A, Wąs A, Sulewski P, Gołaś M, Pogodzińska K, Lecoeur JL, Tocco B, Török Á, Donati M, Vittersø G. Are Short Food Supply Chains More Environmentally Sustainable than Long Chains? A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of the Eco-Efficiency of Food Chains in Selected EU Countries. (2023). LAPSE:2023.26484
Author Affiliations
Majewski E: Institute of Economics and Finance, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Komerska A: Faculty of Building Services, Hydro and Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Technology, 00-653 Warsaw, Poland [ORCID]
Kwiatkowski J: Faculty of Building Services, Hydro and Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Technology, 00-653 Warsaw, Poland [ORCID]
Malak-Rawlikowska A: Institute of Economics and Finance, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland [ORCID]
Wąs A: Institute of Economics and Finance, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Sulewski P: Institute of Economics and Finance, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Gołaś M: Institute of Economics and Finance, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland [ORCID]
Pogodzińska K: Institute of Economics and Finance, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Lecoeur JL: CESAER, AgroSup Dijon, INRA, University Bourgogne Franche-Comté, F-21000 Dijon, France
Tocco B: Newcastle University Business School, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4SE, UK [ORCID]
Török Á: Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development, Corvinus University of Budapest, 1093 Budapest, Hungary [ORCID]
Donati M: Department of Economics and Management, Università degli Studi di Parma, 43125 Parma, Italy [ORCID]
Vittersø G: SIFO Consumption Research Norway, Oslo Metropolitan University, 0130 Oslo, Norway [ORCID]
Komerska A: Faculty of Building Services, Hydro and Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Technology, 00-653 Warsaw, Poland [ORCID]
Kwiatkowski J: Faculty of Building Services, Hydro and Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Technology, 00-653 Warsaw, Poland [ORCID]
Malak-Rawlikowska A: Institute of Economics and Finance, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland [ORCID]
Wąs A: Institute of Economics and Finance, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Sulewski P: Institute of Economics and Finance, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Gołaś M: Institute of Economics and Finance, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland [ORCID]
Pogodzińska K: Institute of Economics and Finance, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Lecoeur JL: CESAER, AgroSup Dijon, INRA, University Bourgogne Franche-Comté, F-21000 Dijon, France
Tocco B: Newcastle University Business School, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4SE, UK [ORCID]
Török Á: Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development, Corvinus University of Budapest, 1093 Budapest, Hungary [ORCID]
Donati M: Department of Economics and Management, Università degli Studi di Parma, 43125 Parma, Italy [ORCID]
Vittersø G: SIFO Consumption Research Norway, Oslo Metropolitan University, 0130 Oslo, Norway [ORCID]
Journal Name
Energies
Volume
13
Issue
18
Article Number
E4853
Year
2020
Publication Date
2020-09-16
ISSN
1996-1073
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PII: en13184853, Publication Type: Journal Article
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LAPSE:2023.26484
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https://doi.org/10.3390/en13184853
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