Carbon footprint in the production of french bread in a bakery in northeast Brazil

Abstract

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is an important methodology for assessing the environmental aspects and impacts of a product, good or service. LCA is an analytical environmental management tool that can analyze the acquisition of raw materials, manufacture, use, maintenance and even its final destination. This study quantified the environmental impacts associated with the production of French bread in a bakery in northeastern Brazil. The environmental impact assessment methods employed in the LCA were IPCC 2013 GWP 100a (midpoint, which expresses environmental impacts in kg CO2-eq) and ReCiPe (endpoint, which groups impacts on human health, damage to ecosystems and use of energy resources). It was verified that the energy source with the greatest environmental impact was natural gas, for both methods evaluated, reaching a participation of more than 23% in the environmental impacts generated. Because natural gas is a major contributor to the energy mix of the bakery, the costs associated with its consumption were higher. Sugarcane bagasse briquettes presented lower levels of environmental impacts and reduced price, but the substitution of natural gas by briquettes is not direct and should consider its significantly lower heating value.