Environmental Impacts Along Food Supply Chains - Methods, Findings and Evidence Gaps - September 2022 - No 185

Aug 27, 2026

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Food systems create major environmental pressures, and this OECD paper synthesizes current knowledge on environmental impacts across food supply chains while mapping what remains uncertain. It evaluates contributions from supply-chain stages, product differences, producer heterogeneity, and the role of international trade. The review finds impacts mainly arise via land-use change and agricultural production, with livestock often showing higher footprints than plant-based foods. It also highlights evidence gaps in areas like biodiversity and soil carbon, including geographic and product blind spots, and calls for more granular data to inform impact-reducing initiatives.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages48

Reading Time2 h 1 min

AccessFree to download

Executive summary

Introduction

Why do we need to know environmental impacts along supply chains?

The role of international trade

The heterogeneity and dynamism of food supply chains

Required levels of detail

Interests and values

Downscaled estimates of impacts by supply chain stage

Overview

Findings from downscaled estimates

Strengths and limitations

Life Cycle Assessments

Overview

Attributional versus consequential LCAs

Findings from food LCAs

Goal and scope definition

Life Cycle Inventory: Data and methodological issues

Life Cycle Impact Assessment: Data and methodological issues

Interpretation of LCA results

To what extent is LCA used in policy?

Strengths and limitations

Trade-based approaches

Input-output analysis

Physical trade flows

Spatially Explicit Information on Production to Consumption Systems (SEI-PCS)

Hybrid approaches

Consequential approaches

Findings from trade-based approaches

Strengths and limitations

Conclusion

Findings on environmental impacts along food supply chains

Evidence gaps

Strengths and limitations of different approaches

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS ALONG FOOD SUPPLY CHAINS METHODS, FINDINGSAND EVIDENCE GAPS OECD FOOD, AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES PAPER September 2022 n°185 Environmental Impacts Along Food Supply Chains: Methods, Findings, and Evidence Gaps Koen Deconinck and Lucinda Toyama Food systems exert major pressures on the environment. This paper reviews what is known and not known about environmental impacts along food supply chains, looking at the contribution of different stages of the supply chain, the impact of different products, heterogeneity among producers, and the role of international trade. This review shows that most environmental impacts in food supply chains occur through land use change or at the stage of agricultural production. Livestock (especially ruminant livestock) has a higher footprint than plant-based food. However, there is also important heterogeneity among producers, even within the same region. A significant share of total environmental impacts is "embodied" in international trade, although considerably less than half. In terms of evidence gaps, some impacts (e.g. biodiversity, soil carbon) have been less studied, and there are geographic and product blind spots. Moreover, existing evidence is not sufficiently granular. While important evidence gaps thus exist, the overall picture that emerges is one of a rapidly growing evidence base, which can inform innovative supply chain initiatives to reduce impacts. This is one of four papers developing work on addressing evidence gaps on food systems in OECD countries (OECD Food, Agriculture and Fisheries Papers 183 to 186) . Key words: Life Cycle Assessment , input-output analysis, agricultural trade, global value chains, sustainability JEL codes: Q51 , Q56, Q17 , Q27, Q37 Acknowledgements The authors acknowledges valuable discussions with Peter Arbuckle (USDA), Ken Ash, Lauren Baker (Global Alliance for the Future of Food), Nick Betts (SAI Platform), Koen Boone (The Sustainability Consortium), Sarah Bridle (University of York), Jan Börner (University of Bonn), Martin Bruckner (Vienna University of Economics and Business), Viktoria de Bourbon de Parme (World Benchmarking Alliance), Florence Buchholzer (European Commission), Sebastiano Caleffi (City University of London), Monica Crippa (European Commission – Joint Research Centre), Simon Croft (University of York), Camillo De Camillis (FAO), Magali Deryckere (Bain & Company), Michiel de Vries (EEAC), Jelle Dhaen (Bain & Company), Patty Fong (Global Alliance for the Future of Food), Gretel Gambarelli (UNEP), Javier Godar (Stockholm Environmental Institute), Monica Hadarits (Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef), Corinna Hawkes (City University of London), May Hobeika (independent consultant), Marta Hugas (EFSA), Salman Hussain (UNEP), Adriana Ignaciuk (FAO), Joanna Ilicic (FAO), Sofia Ioannidou (EFSA), Clea Kaske-Kuck (World Business Council for Sustainable Development), Susanne Kat (World Business Council for Sustainable Development), Matthieu Lamolle (ITC), David Leclere (IIASA), Adrian Leip (European Commission), Anne Locke (ODI), Steven Lord (Oxford University), Will Martin (IFPRI), Christophe Matthys (University of Leuven), Sarah McLaren (Massey University), Alisher Mirzabaev (University of Bonn), Thomas Nemecek (Agroscope), Kelly Parsons (University of Hertfordshire), Helena Pinto (UNEP), Joseph Poore (Oxford University), Eline Reintjes (FAIRR), Greg Sixt (FACT Alliance), Alexander Stein (European Commission), Thomas Tomich (UC Davis), Francesco Tubiello (FAO), Hannah van Zanten (Wageningen University), Jan Verheeke (Minaraad), Joachim von Braun (University of Bonn), Liesbet Vranken (University of Leuven), Stephanie Walton (City University of London), Matthew Watkins (World Business Council for Sustainable Development), Chris West (University of York), Joseph Wozniak (ITC), Helena Wright (FAIRR), Jenn Yates (Global Alliance for the Future of Food), and participants in the ZEF Colloquium (Univ

FAQs

Which supply-chain stages drive most environmental impacts in food supply chains?

Most impacts occur through land-use change and at the stage of agricultural production.

How do livestock and plant-based foods compare in environmental footprint?

Livestock, especially ruminant livestock, generally has a higher footprint than plant-based food.

What key evidence gaps does the paper identify?

Some impacts such as biodiversity and soil carbon are less studied, and there are geographic and product blind spots, along with a lack of sufficient granularity in existing evidence.

Aug 27, 2026

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