Food systems

European Platform Life Cycle Assessment (EPLCA)

Brief me

We use life cycle assessment (LCA) to uncover the environmental impacts hidden across Europe’s food systems, from climate change and biodiversity loss to land and resource use
Our models track the journey of food from production to consumption and waste, revealing the impacts embedded throughout global supply chains
We provide science-based evidence that supports EU policies shaping the future of food, helping build systems that are more sustainable, resilient, and resource-efficient

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Preventing food waste

The JRC drives EU action on food waste by developing harmonised accounting models, prevention frameworks, and the Food Waste Prevention Calculator. It supports policy, tracks…

Modelling land footprint

The EU Land Footprint Model, developed by EPLCA with Eurostat, estimates the land needed to meet EU consumption. Covering over 500 bio-based products, it distinguishes…

Sustainability labelling can be an important instrument to reduce barriers towards sustainable food consumption by increasing consumers’ information, understanding and awareness regarding the sustainability value…

Sustainable Public Procurement

Sustainable public food procurement is a policy tool providing a set of criteria, best practices and tools that can be used by contracting authorities and implemented by procurers in Europe…