Life Cycle Assessment

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
   1. Objectives
   2. Learning goals
   3. Teacher page
2. Course content: Life cycle assessment (LCA) of pork chains
   1. What are the environmental impact of food production?
   2. Global warming
   3. GWP of different foods
   4. Nutrient enrichment (eutrophication)
   5. Acidification
3. How to access environmental impact of pork?
   1. LCA of 1 kg Danish Pork
   2. What is included in a LCA?
   3. Phase 1
   4. Phase 2
   5. Phase 3
   6. Phase 4
   7. System expansion and allocation
4. LCA for different production Systems
   1. The Danish standard system
   2. The Danish organic system
   3. The French standard system
   4. The Alternative French system: Porc Basque
   5. Summary of performance and LCA in the four systems
5. Completion
   1. Comments
   2. Self-assessment
   3. Key messages
   4. Further reading and references
   5. Evaluation
   6. Acknowledgement

The French standard system

In the standard system in France, fattening pigs are produced indoors on a fully slatted floor, with 0.7m²/pig (from 30 kg to slaughter). In France, the standard system represents more than 90% of pig production. Pigs are generally bred in batches and there are no particular regulations on feed, which could be bought or produced on the farm. For farrowing and during lactation, sows are confined in individual conventional crates (on a fully slatted floor). Piglets and lactating sows stay in crates until weaning (between 21 and 28 days after farrowing). Weaned piglets are kept in a post-weaning area with 0.33m²/piglet. Sows are kept in groups with at least 2.25m²/sow and 1.64 m²/gilt) from 4 weeks after mating/weaning until about 10 days before farrowing.

Fattening pigs kept on concrete floor and weaners kept on slatted floor. Video: Julie Ryschawy