Environmental Impacts of Pig and Poultry Production: Insights From a Systematic Review

Abstract

Pig and poultry production systems have reached high-performance levels over the last few decades. However, there is still room for improvement when it comes to their environmental sustainability. This issue is even more relevant due to the growing demand for food demand since this surplus food production needs to be met at an affordable cost with minimum impact on the environment. This study presents a systematic review of peer-reviewed manuscripts that investigated the environmental impacts associated with pig and poultry production. For this purpose, independent reviews were performed and two databases were constructed, one for each production system. Previous studies published in peer-reviewed journals were considered for the databases if the method of life cycle assessment (LCA) was applied to pig (pork meat) or poultry (broiler meat or table eggs) production to estimate at least the potential effects of climate change, measured as CO2-eq. Studies considering the cradle-to-farm gate were considered, as well as those evaluating processes up to the slaughterhouse or processor gate. The pig database comprised 55 studies, while 30 publications were selected for the poultry database. These studies confirmed feeding (which includes the crop cultivation phase, manufacturing processes, and transportation) as the main contributor to the environmental impact associated with pig and poultry production systems. Several studies evaluated feeding strategies, which were indicated as viable alternatives to mitigate the environmental footprint associated with both production chains. In this study, precision feeding techniques are highlighted given their applicability to modern pig and poultry farming. These novel feeding strategies are good examples of innovative strategies needed to break paradigms, improve resource-use efficiency, and effectively move the current productive scenario toward more sustainable livestock systems.

Levantamento de aspectos e impactos ambientais na avicultura de corte: uma revisão sistemática da literatura

“…Já Andretta et al (2021) apontam que os levantamentos de impactos ambientais provenientes da avicultura ainda necessitam de grandes aprofundamentos nas mais diversas etapas da atividade, um ponto que merece grande destaque é o uso da água, que é muito pouco abordado.…”

Edible Insects for Humans and Animals: Nutritional Composition and an Option for Mitigating Environmental Damage

“…These greenhouse gases cause an increase in the temperature of the planet, thereby causing changes in ecosystems [ 5 ]. Pig and chicken production also has a significant environmental impact (less than intensive livestock production), as these animals contribute significant amounts of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) into the environment [ 6 ]. Animal protein production generates a considerable environmental impact depending on the species and the production system.…”

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

“…The diet of laying hens is adjusted based on the availability of ingredients, price and transport costs so as to obtain the most optimal nutritional efficiency of the entire production. On the other hand, for the production of feed, it is necessary to cultivate the land for each of the crops that are part of it, use chemicals for soil treatment, fossil fuels for mechanization, water for irrigation, etc., which further increases the environmental impact in this part of the chain [ 10 , 11 , 12 ]. Although the dimensions of the environment were recognized as very important factors for research into animal origin food chains, there was no research that included all actors in the table egg chain: producers, retailers and household consumers.…”