dsm-firmenich, a leading innovator in health and nutrition, and Donau Soja, an international non-profit organization supporting sustainable European soya, announce their partnership to emphasize the environmental footprint of animal feeds and feed ingredients using Sustell™, prominent LCA platform for the animal protein value chain.
The ecological impact of eggs, meat, milk, and farmed seafood depends significantly on the composition of animal feeds and how efficiently animals utilize them. Advanced life cycle assessment (LCA) platforms like Sustell™ enable the feed and animal protein sectors to precisely quantify and enhance their sustainability practices, opening avenues for new revenue streams.
David Nickell, Vice President of Sustainability & Business Solutions at dsm-firmenich, Animal Nutrition & Health, stated, “Our commitment to this partnership with Donau Soja will help empower businesses along the value chain to both improve and communicate the sustainability of their operations. Accurate, scalable and credible LCA measurement of a product's environmental impact from farm to fork is fundamental to unlocking multiple value opportunities such as eco-labeling initiatives of both food and feed, sustainable finance, adherence to the latest sustainability reporting requirements, as well as being a strong business diagnostic to understand where best practice is within the production process.”
Approximately one-third of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions originate from food production, with 10-15% directly attributed to livestock emissions. As a result of sustainability commitments, regulatory mandates, and consumer preferences, companies throughout the food value chain are increasingly urged to measure, report, and mitigate their environmental footprints.
Susanne Fromwald, Senior Advisor and Program Director at Donau Soja, added, “Animal feed accounts for 40 to 60% of the environmental footprint of eggs, meat, milk and farmed fish. Protein sources in animal feed, such as non-certified soybean meal from overseas or even Europe, can be major contributors to the overall greenhouse gas footprint. Donau Soja has conducted several science-based calculations with renowned institutes whose results show the carbon footprint reduction potential of using certified European soya. With Donau Soja certified non-GM sustainable conversion-free European feed we could prove for example a reduction of 42% CO2 emissions per kilogram pork. The partnership with dsm-firmenich, using SustellTM creates benefits for our Donau Soja members to do more science-based calculations and bring greater transparency to the feed and food industry that empowers more sustainable food production and consumption.”