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 Alternative French system: Porc Basque

The Porc Basque System is only used in a small location, the Basque region. Producers in this system have to use pure-breed animals, the local breed Porc Pir Noir du Pays Basque, which is genetically protected through the French Institute for Pig Production, IFIP. Porc Basque is particularly adapted to processing of cured ham (like the Bayonne ham). Pigs are slaughtered at 12 months of age with a minimum carcass weight of 100 kg (130 kg live weight). Fattening pigs are kept outdoors in natural habitat with 250 m²/pig on average. Reproductive sows are kept outdoors, or indoors in pens with straw, during gestation and lactation with their piglets. Piglets are weaned between 4 and 6 weeks of age.

Piglets born indoors on slatted floor but kept outdoors as weaners. Video: Julie Ryschawy