RT Journal Article
T1 Pursuing the route to eco-efficiency in dairy production: The case of Galician area
A1 Cortés Montoya, Antonio José
A1 Feijoo Costa, Gumersindo
A1 Fernández, Mario
A1 Moreira Vilar, María Teresa
K1 Life cycle assessment
K1 Data envelopment analysis
K1 Dairy farms
K1 Eco-efficiency
K1 Carbon footprint
K1 Water footprint
AB The search for more efficient and sustainable processes has become the cornerstone of any production system. It is within this framework that it is highly relevant to propose improvement actions based on a detailed eco-efficiency analysis of different facilities so that roadmaps for more sustainable processes are considered. The joint use of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) appears to be an appropriate methodology to assess the eco-efficiency of multiple units, providing targets and benchmarks for inefficient ones. This work advances in this direction by integrating both analysis methodologies in the calculation of environmental indicators associated with milk production for a large group of farms, nearly 100 decision-making units. Twenty-one dairy farms were identified as efficient, and the average efficiency score of the inefficient farms was 0.58. Based on the comparison of current operation levels with target levels, it was possible to quantify average reductions of up to 53% for input consumption levels, resulting in average impact reductions of 49% in carbon footprint and 55% in water footprint. Comparing the outcomes of this study with those reported in 2011 for Galician farms (Northwest Spain), a slight decrease in eco-efficiency was noted in the dairy sector. This study shows how the Galician dairy sector must address sustainable development objectives, especially those established in Agenda 2030 to achieve constant improvement and sustainable and efficient production
PB Elsevier
SN 0959-6526
YR 2021
FD 2021
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10347/23563
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10347/23563
LA eng
NO A. Cortes, G. Feijoo, M. Fernández et al., Pursuing the route to eco-efficiency in dairy production: The case of Galician area, Journal of Cleaner Production, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.124861
NO This research was founded by CEPES (118.831059.02). A. Cortés, M.T. Moreira and G. Feijoo belong to the Galician Competitive Research Group GRC (ED431C 2017/29) as well as to CRETUS Strategic Partnership (ED431E 2018/01), co-founded by FEDER (EU)
DS Minerva
RD 22 abr 2026