Environmental trade-offs of pig production systems under varied operational efficiencies.

ABSTRACT: Production of pork, the most consumed meat globally, is estimated to emit 668 m tonnes CO₂-eq of greenhouse gases each year. Amongst various production systems that comprise the pig industry, grain-based intensive production is widely regarded as the largest polluter of the environment, and thus it is imperative to develop alternative systems that can provide the right balance between sustainability and food security. Using an original dataset from the Republic of Ireland, this paper examines the life-cycle environmental impacts of representative pig farms operating under varying production efficiencies. For the baseline farm with an average production efficiency, global warming potential (GWP), acidification potential (AP) and eutrophication potential (EP) per kg carcass weight

SUBMITTER: McAuliffe GA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5589118 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature