Improving the confectionary supply chain: evaluation of environmental impacts of ice cream

Abstract

The increased demand for manufactured food products has led to the development of more sophisticated and technologically advanced production systems, manufacturing a wide and diverse portfolio of products, including food. One question that arises is whether these products are environmental sustainable when the whole supply chain is taken into account. The aim of this study is to contribute to addressing this question for different food products in the confectionary sector. This paper focuses in particular on ice cream: using life cycle assessment, it estimates the life cycle global warming potential (GWP) of ice cream to help identify improvement opportunities along the whole supply chain. The GWP has been estimated using life cycle assessment as a tool. The scope of the study is from ‘cradle to grave’, considering all the life cycle stages from the production of raw materials, to production and consumption of ice cream to end-of-life waste management. The total GWP is estimated per kg of ice cream. The results suggest that the raw materials, manufacturing and retail contribute to the majority of the impact and should be targeted for improvements.

29th EFFoST International Conference. Food Science Research and Innovation:

Delivering sustainable solutions to the global society and economy

Link to EFFoST 2015

Organised by
European Federation of Food Science and Technology (EFFoST)
International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUFoST)

Administration by

Elsevier (Elsevier Conferences)

Keywords: Sustainability; Life cycle assessment; Global warming potential; Sustainable food chains