Environmental life cycle assessment for improved management of agri-food companies: the case of organic whole-grain durum wheat pasta in Sicily

Purpose This study was developed to address the environmental issues associated with a high-quality pasta production process, as the essential starting point to identify the related hotspots and the feasible improvement potentials. Methods To this end, a life cycle assessment (LCA) at the food producer's gate was performed. Primary data were collected in a small-size Sicilian pasta factory located in Fiumefreddo (Sicily), where organic 'Senatore Cappelli' durum wheat landrace is cultivated and later is processed into whole-meal semolina and pasta, whilst secondary data were extrapolated from Ecoinvent v. 3.5 database, as available in the SimaPro 9.1.0.11 software. The environmental profile of pasta was assessed by adopting the Impact Assessment Method (IAM) that is required for use in case of Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs). This is the EPD 2018 v. 1.01, as one of the European IAMs contained in the aforementioned SimaPro software. The environmental profile of pasta was analysed in terms of four different impact categories, namely global warming, eutrophication, acidification, and photochemical oxidation, as recommended by the PCR 2010:01 Uncooked pasta, developed in the framework of the International EPD System. Results The obtained results, expressed in the form of equivalent indicators, suggest that cultivation is the phase contributing the largest impacts for all the midpoint categories considered by the LCIA method. In addition, it was observed that the contributions assessed in this study are highly comparable and aligned with those contained in the EPDs published in the pasta sector, specifically for the cultivation phase, which performs similarly to the only case of organic pasta EPD amongst those developed. Conclusions At the end, the study suggested that the cultivation of ancient varieties and landraces in organic and low-input farming systems have a large potential for reducing the environmental impact of pasta. Finally, although specific, the results of the study may be of interest to researchers, LCA practitioners, farmers and producers, policymakers, and other stakeholders, and could support the implementation of environmental labels.