Assessment of Environmental Impacts from Different Perspectives—Case Study of Egg Value Chain System in Serbia

Abstract

The environmental performance of various aspects of animal origin food supply chains has been the focus of research in recent years, and has provided useful information. However, there were no studies that covered the entire egg supply chain from different perspectives. The aim of this study was to analyze the majority of environmental impacts in the table egg supply chain comprising of three subsystems: farms, retail outlets and households, with quantification of each individual subsystem and the entire supply chain. All data were gathered from 30 farms, 50 retail stores and 300 households in Serbia. In parallel, the perception and ranking of environmental impacts along the supply chain were also evaluated. Finally, the quality function deployment for the environment was used to determine the degree of correlation between the set of environmental requirements and the identified environmental impacts. Results revealed that the greatest environmental impacts come from the production of feed for laying hens and the use of natural resources, and they contribute the most to the pollution of each individual environmental indicator. Additionally, the results show the differences in the environmental impacts of each individual subsystem and identify opportunities to mitigate them through the optimization of animal feed, energy consumption and household food waste management. The overall perspective of the egg supply chain points to climate change effects as the most important. The differences in the perceptions of environmental impacts along the entire egg supply chain suggest the need for promotion of mitigation strategies to all stakeholders that would encourage them to achieve sustainable development goals.

Life Cycle Assessment Project for the Brazilian Egg Industry

“…The studies presented in Table 1 predominantly highlight the relevance of the LCA and identify that the feeding of laying hens and the proper management of manure are the main contributors to the emission of greenhouse gases and impact the life cycle of the eggs. It was also possible to identify that these studies did not include the complete life cycle from the cradle to the retail of the eggs, only up to the pre-gate of production [20,[43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50]. It should be noted that the most relevant impacts considered in the studies presented in Table 1 were: Acidification (kg SO 2 eq.…”

Evaluating Environmental and Energy Performance Indicators of Food Systems, within Circular Economy and “Farm to Fork” Frameworks

“…Indicators of Specific Products: The Egg Supply Chain Mitrovic et al [98] analyzed the egg supply chain to comprehend the environmental impacts by observing a sample of three main categories of actors of the chain: farmers, retailers, and householders. The results revealed that the greatest environmental impacts came from the production of feed for laying hens and the use of natural resources.…”

The Circular Economy Potential of Spent Hens’ Co-Products and By-Products in Italy by Material Flow Analysis

“…Figure 1 illustrates the egg supply chain, as presented by Bux and Amicarelli [30], Pelletier et al [31,32] and Mitrovic et al [33]. The egg supply chain starts with breeder flock facilities, which provide eggs to hatcheries, which are then placed into incubators for a total of 21 days.…”