Environmental impact of cheese production

Soares, Bruna Borges; Alves, Edmar Costa; Neto, José Adolfo de Almeida; Rodrigues, Luciano Brito

doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-821363-6.00009-6

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a methodology used to identify factors and measure the impacts generated by a product or process from concept to end-use [30]. The implementation of LCAs in the dairy sector has only happened recently, with LCAs mostly being applied to cheese production [31]. Although some LCA studies consider the use of cheese Fermentation 2023, 9, 897 3 of 24 whey in the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) [23], lactic acid [32], and bioplastics [33], these studies still fail to address the complete environmental impacts of cheese whey from milk collection to final consumption or discharge [22,34].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although some LCA studies consider the use of cheese Fermentation 2023, 9, 897 3 of 24 whey in the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) [23], lactic acid [32], and bioplastics [33], these studies still fail to address the complete environmental impacts of cheese whey from milk collection to final consumption or discharge [22,34]. The environmental impact assessment often depends on the chosen system boundaries (e.g., cradle-to-gate, gate-to-gate, cradle-to-grave) and the given allocations for the studies [31].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Got Whey? Sustainability Endpoints for the Dairy Industry through Resource Biorecovery

Giulianetti de Almeida,

Mockaitis,

Weissbrodt

2023

Fermentation

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Whey has applications in food, beverages, personal care products, pharmaceuticals, and the medical sector. However, it remains a massive dairy residue worldwide (160.7 million m3 year−1), with high organic and nutrient loads. About 42% is used for low-value products such as animal feed and fertilizers or is even directly discharged into water streams, leading to ecosystem damage via eutrophication. We reviewed the uses and applications of cheese whey, along with associated environmental impacts and innovative ways to mitigate them using affordable and scalable technologies. Recycling and repurposing whey remain challenges for remote locations and poor communities with limited access to expensive technology. We propose a closed-loop biorefinery strategy to simultaneously mitigate environmental impacts and valorize whey resources. Anaerobic digestion utilizes whey to produce biogas and/or carboxylates. Alternative processes combining anaerobic digestion and low-cost open photobioprocesses can valorize whey and capture organic, nitrogenous, and phosphorous nutrients into microalgal biomass that can be used as food and crop supply or processed into biofuels, pigments, and antioxidants, among other value-added products. The complete valorization of cheese whey also depends on facilitating access to relevant information on whey production, identifying stakeholders, reducing technology gaps among countries, enforcing legislation and compliance, and creating subsidies and fostering partnerships with industries and between countries.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Got Whey? Sustainability Endpoints for the Dairy Industry through Resource Biorecovery

Giulianetti de Almeida,

Mockaitis,

Weissbrodt

2023

Fermentation

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“…This diversity is currently not well represented in the literature. Indeed, a recent examination of 25 LCAs of cheese by [8] included the same 17 studies included in the literature review of [6] as well as the 16 studies reviewed by [5] (with 8 studies included in both). Furthermore, the studies carried out to date focused on only one or a small number of cheeses, making it difficult to understand the origin of any possible variations in the environmental impacts of cheese.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Explaining the Differences between the Environmental Impacts of 44 French Artisanal Cheeses

et al. 2022

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Cheese production causes significant environmental impacts, which have to be reduced. In France, a lot of different cheeses are available, made from different milks but also from different cheese technologies. The goal of this study was to understand the origin of the environmental impact variation between cheeses made from different technologies and milks and produced using different ripening practices. To do so, the environmental impacts of 44 different types of French artisanal cheese, all produced under protected designation of origin (PDO) labels, were assessed using the life cycle assessment. Cheese technologies were fully described and two ripening scenarios were investigated. Results show that the differences of environmental impacts between cheeses mainly come from: the milk type (cow, goat, or sheep), the milk amount needed to produce one kilogram of cheese, the energetic performance of the ripening room, and the ripening time. Such results could be useful to cheesemakers to identify the origin of the environmental impacts of their products and to implement effective actions to reduce them. According to the results, innovations leading to the reduction in electrical consumption during ripening are interesting to explore in order to increase the environmental performance of a cheese.

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Environmental impact of cheese production

Cited by 2 publications

References 59 publications

Got Whey? Sustainability Endpoints for the Dairy Industry through Resource Biorecovery

Got Whey? Sustainability Endpoints for the Dairy Industry through Resource Biorecovery

Explaining the Differences between the Environmental Impacts of 44 French Artisanal Cheeses

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