Environmental Impacts Associated with the Production and Packing of Persian Lemon in Mexico through Life-Cycle Assessment

Abstract

In this study, the environmental impacts associated with the intensive production of Persian lemons are assessed, including the agricultural and packing phases of the fresh fruit. A life-cycle assessment (LCA) tool was used in accordance with the ISO 14040 and 14044 standards and implemented in SimaPro PhD (9.2) software. The life-cycle inventory database was primarily composed of data collected during field visits to local lemon orchards and the main packing company in the region. The functional unit was defined as 1 kg of packed fresh Persian lemons. The selected impact categories were the carbon footprint, water footprint, and energy footprint, and the results obtained for the defined functional unit were 405.8 g CO2 eq, 40.3 L of water, and 5.9 MJ, respectively. The industrial packing phase of the fruits had a greater impact on the carbon and energy footprints, mostly due to the manufacturing of packaging materials and cardboard boxes, followed by the transportation of supplies. Regarding the water footprint, the agricultural phase was identified as the most significant contributor to water consumption, primarily attributed to maintenance operations and the application of agrochemicals.