Product environmental footprint of the representative product for vegetables

This representative product study was done in the context of the development of a methodology for calculating the environmental footprint of fresh fruits and vegetables; the Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules for Fresh Produce (FreshProducePEFCR, see Weststrate et al., 2025a). The results of this study feed into the method development for the FreshProducePEFCR, by identifying the most relevant impact categories, life cycle stages, processes and direct elementary flows for the sub-category vegetables, as well as by identifying data needs, data collection activities and data quality requirements for the sub-category vegetables. The representative product is a virtual (i.e., non-existing) product that reflects the average consumption of vegetables (in kg/capita/year) at the European market. The representative product consists of tomatoes cultivated in Italy (23%), tomatoes cultivated in Spain (17%), tomatoes cultivated in the Netherlands (3%), cabbages cultivated in Poland (30%), carrots cultivated in the Netherlands (20%), green beans cultivated in France (6%), and mushrooms cultivated in the Netherlands (2%). It should be noted that the virtual representative product does carry the risk that products and technologies with a relative low market share are overlooked, therefore the results of this study cannot be used to make statements about the environmental impact of the product-category vegetables as such. No data quality rating has been applied in this study yet. This study is also not intended to be used in context of comparisons or for comparative assertions to be disclosed to the public. The impact of 1 kilogram consumable vegetables is calculated, this excludes the inedible parts of the vegetable. The study has a cradle-to-grave approach, meaning all stages of a vegetable’s life cycle are covered. A further split is applied: raw materials, pre-processing and starting materials; cultivation; post-harvest treatment, storage and handling; distribution; consumer packaging; retail; use; end-of-life. Product dependent and independent processes are excluded from the use phase, but inedible food losses are considered to fulfil the functional unit of 1 kilogram consumable vegetable. The life cycle inventory (LCI) has been compiled from a combination of company-specific data and secondary data. Where no company-specific data were available, secondary data sources such as academic literature and databases have been used. The Environmental Footprint life cycle impact assessment method version 3.1 was used to translate the emissions and resource extractions compiled in the LCI into environmental impacts.