LCA.6121.159.2017
LifeCycleAssessmentofRippleNon-DairyMilk
PreparedbyAshleyHendersonandStefanUnnasch,LifeCycleAssociates,LLC.March2017
1. Introduction
RippleFoods,Inc.producesanon-dairymilkproductthatcontainsproteinandnutrientsfrom
yellowpeas.Therearemanyreasonstoexpectthatmilkmadefromyellowpeasshouldbe
highlysustainable.Forone,peasarelegumes,andlikealllegumesarenitrogenfixing.This
meansthattheyreplenishthenitrogencontentofthesoilswheretheyareplantedandrequire
verylittlenitrogenfertilizer,whichisenergyintensivetoproducecommercially.
Yellowfieldpeasarenotableforbeingtheleastexpensiveandhighestproteincontentnonanimalsourceofproteinavailable.Theyhaveaproteincontentofabout21-25%,andcanbe
splitorgroundintoflourforhumanconsumption(Mckay,2003).Theyarealsonitrogenfixing,
likealllegumes,whichmeanstheycanextractnitrogenfromtheairandneedverylittle
nitrogenfertilizer.Theycanbeusedasatransitioncropbycommodityfarmersofthingslike
wheattoavoidtheneedtotillandreducefertilizerrequirements.Yellowpeasarealsowater
efficient,capableofachieving30-bushelperacreyieldsononly10inchesofrainfall(Parker,
2014).Inaddition,Ripplebottlesaremadefrom100%recyclablePETplastic,whichisitself
100%recyclable.
InordertoscientificallyassesstherelativeenvironmentalimpactsofRipplemilkandother
substituteproducts,Rippleembarkedonalifecycleassessmentstudytoquantifythe
greenhousegasemissionsandwaterrequirementsofproductionanduseofRipplemilkas
comparedtodairymilk,almondmilk,andsoymilk.
2. GoalandScope
ThegoalsofthisstudyaretoexaminethegreatestcontributingfactorstoRipplemilk’s
greenhousegas(GHG)emissionsthroughoutitslifecycle,compareRipplemilktothemost
populardairyandnon-dairymilksavailableintheUSmarket,andexaminethewater
consumptionofyellowpeasascomparedtootherdairyandnon-dairymilkalternatives.The
scopeoftheGHGstudycoversfromthefarmingtoretailstepsofdairyandnon-dairymilk
production,withtheaddedstepofpackagingproductionanddisposal.Thewaterfootprint
coversfarmingofcropsfornon-dairymilk,andthefarmingofcropsforcowfeedandcow
farmingactivitiesfordairymilk.
SystemBoundary
Thesystemboundarydefinesthescopeofactivitiesandemissionsassociatedwithalifecycle
analysis.Generalclassesofinputsandoutputsareidentifiedforkeyprocessingsteps.The
systemboundaryforthesubstituteproductsisthesametoensurethattheanalysisis
performedonaconsistentbasis.Transportemissionsoffinishedproductsareexcludedfrom
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LCA.6121.159.2017
thisstudybecausetheyarethesameinallcases,andthereforecancelout.Thesystem
boundarydiagraminFigure1showsthelifecyclestepsthatareincludedintheRipple,almond,
andsoymilklifecycleassessment.Thelifecyclestepsfordairymilkareslightlydifferent,as
showninFigure2.
Figure1.Non-DairyMilkSystemBoundaryDiagram
Figure2.DairyMilkSystemBoundaryDiagram
Eachofthepathwaysexaminedheregeneratesanumberofco-products.Forexamplepea
mealisusedforanimalfeed,almondhuskscangenerateelectricpower,anddairymilk
productionresultsinbeefandtallow.Theprimaryproductistheproteinladenlegumeormilk
andtheotherproductshavelesservalue.Aco-productcreditforthefeedproductsisapplied
basedoneconomicallocation.
FunctionalUnit
Thefunctionalunitforthelifecycleassessmentstudyisthemassofproteininaliterofmilk.
Eachtypeofmilkcontainsadifferentamountofprotein.Therefore,withtheproteinfunctional
unit,thelifecycleemissionsforaliterofmilkaredividedbytheproteincontentinthemilk.
ThismeanstheGHGemissionsandwaterusearecomparedbetweenthemilksbasedonthe
amountofproteinthatiscontainedinaliterofmilk.Reportingresultsbasedontheproteinina
literofmilktakesintoaccountthepackagingrequiredtodelivertheproteininthefunctional
unit.Theresultswouldbedifferentfordifferentsizesofmilkcontainerssincetheamountof
packagingrequiredtocontaindifferentvolumesdoesnotscalelinearly.
3. LCAModelingApproach
Lifecycleassessment(LCA)isamethodologyforstudyingthepotentialenvironmentalimpacts
incurredthroughouttheentirelifeofaproductsystem.ThisLCAexaminespotentialemissions
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LCA.6121.159.2017
fromtheproduction,use,anddisposalofthesefourproductsintermsofGHGemissionsand
freshwaterconsumption.
Everyproducthasitsownlifecycle,composedofmanydifferentsteps.ThelifecycleofRipple
milkincludesthefarmingofyellowpeas,theproductionofRiptein(aproteinisolateofyellow
peas),Ripplemilkproduction,retail,andproductionanddisposalofitsPETbeveragecontainer.
Italsoincludestheproductionofallupstreaminputs,suchasfertilizer,electricity,andnatural
gas,andtransportofintermediateandfinishedproducts.Thisanalysisincludesallpathway
processsteps,includingprocessingpeasintoproteinisolate,milkprocessing,packaging,and
disposalofpackaging.Upstreamemissionsarealsoincluded.ThisreferstotheembeddedGHG
burdenassociatedwithprocessinputssuchaselectricityandnaturalgas.Emissionfactorsfor
themodelingofprocessGHGimpactsweretakenfromtheGREET_12016model.1Retailand
transporttoretailareexcludedfromthisanalysissincetheyareassumedtobeidenticalforall
products.
Thelifecyclesofothernon-dairymilksaresimilar.TheanalysisofdairymilkGHGemissions
reliesonpriorstudies,butincludescomparablesteps.
Non-DairyMilks
Datawascollectedfromarangeofpubliclyavailablesourcestoreflectthefarminginputsof
fertilizer,pesticides,andenergyforyellowpeas,almonds,andsoybeans.Fertilizerand
pesticidedatawasnotavailableforyellowpeas;so,averagefarminginputsforlentilfarming
wereadjustedbasedongrowerreportsfromthepeafarmersthatsupplyRippleFoods
(Muehlbauer,2016).Almondfarminginputsweretakenfroma2015lifecycleassessmentof
almondfarminginCaliforniathattookintoaccountthe26yearlifecycleofalmondtrees
(Kendall,2015).Fertilizerneedsvaryoverthelifecycleofthetree,sothe26yearaverage
numberwasusedinthisanalysis.Pesticide,herbicide,andfarmingenergyinputsweretaken
fromtheGREET12016modeldefaultsforsoybeanproduction.Theenvironmentalimpactsof
allfarminginputsweremodeledinGREET2016(ANL,2014),whichincorporatestheupstream
emissionsforalloftheagriculturalinputs.Thecontributionofagriculturalemissionsforyellow
peasisshowninFigure4.
Foralmonds,fieldemissionswereestimatedbasedon1.5%oftheappliednitrogenasalmonds
tonotresultinnitrogenfixationemissionsasshowninFigure4.
1
ArgonneNationalLaboratory,ANL.(2016)."Thegreenhousegases,regulatedemissions,andenergyusein
transportation(GREET)model,Version1_2016."
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LCA.6121.159.2017
Figure3.AgriculturalGHGemissionsforRipplePeas(g/kgcrop).
Figure4.AgriculturalGHGemissionsforAlmonds(g/kgofcrop).
Formostagriculturalcrops,oneofthelargestsourcesofGHGemissionsisN2Ofromapplied
nitrogenfertilizer.Inthecaseofnitrogenfixinglegumes,N2Oemissionsarealsoproducedfrom
thenitrogenassociatedwithfixation.Thusseveralsourcesofnitrogencontributetothe
formationofN2O,unconvertedfertilizer,nitrogenfromfixationinnodulesaswellasabove
groundcropresidue.WhilelegumeresultinfixationemissionstheNperunitofcropis
comparabletoothercropslikecornandalmonds.TheseN2Osourceswereestimatedusingthe
EuropeanCommission’sGlobalNitrousOxideCalculator,theGNOCmodel(European
CommissionJRC,2014).Fertilizerinputsandyieldsusedforsoybeansandyellowpeasinthis
studywereinputtedtotheGNOCmodelalongwiththegrowingregion,andthemodel
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determinedtheN2Oemissionsfromeverypotentialemissionsource,asshownforsoybeansin
Figure5andforyellowpeasinFigure6.
Figure5.NitrousOxideEmissionsfromSoybeanFarming
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Figure6.NitrousOxideEmissionsfromYellowPeaFarming
Farmingemissionsaremultipliedbytheamountofplantmatterinthefinishedmilktogivethe
carbonintensityoffarmingonavolumetricbasis.Thekgofplantmatterperliterofmilkare
determinedbasedontheproteincontentofthefeedstockandtheproteincontentofthe
finishedmilkproduct.Alossrateof27%isassumedforallnon-dairymilksbasedonRipple’s
proprietaryprocessingdata,meaningthat1.38kgoffarmedplantmatterfeedstockwill
become1kgofplantmatterinthefinishedmilkproduct.
Processingdatasuchaselectricityandnaturalgasuseforproteinisolationandmilkproduction
forRipplemilkwastakendirectlyfromfacilityoperatingdata.Twoscenarioswereconsidered
foralmondmilkprocessing.InScenario1,almondmilkprocessingdatacopiesthemilk
processingdataforsoymilk,takenfromapubliclyavailablestudywhichusedinventorydata
fromtheEcoinventdatabase.Inscenario2,theprocessingdatafromRipple’sproduction
processwasusedforalmondmilkprocessingandsoymilkprocessing,makingthethree
productsequivalentforthislifecyclestage.Inallcases,processingemissionsresultfromthe
useofelectricityandnaturalgasinthefacilitythatprocessesthefeedstockintonon-dairymilk.
Theresultinggreenhousegasemissionsfromelectricityandnaturalgasusageweremodeled
basedonGREET2016data.
Ripplemilkispackagedinapolyethyleneterephthalate(PET)bottle,whilemostalmondand
soymilksarecontainedinaTetraPakbox,whichismadeofseverallayersofmaterialincluding
aluminum,paperboard,andpolyethylene.ThePETusedinRipplemilkbottlesis100%recycled
PET.Tetrapaksaremorechallengingtorecycle,butitistechnicallypossible.Thisstudy
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LCA.6121.159.2017
assumesarecyclingrateof12.66%forTetraPaks.Thegreenhousegasemissionsassociated
withPETcollectionandrecyclingweretakenfroma2011LCAofPETbeveragebottles
consumedinCalifornia(Kuczenski,2011).Thegreenhousegasemissionsassociatedwithtetra
packproduction,collection,andrecyclingweretakenfroma2012lifecycleassessmentof
ItalianTetraPakproduction,andassumea1000mLcontainerwithapolyethylenecap(Scipioni,
2012).
Inaddition,watermovementandpumpingcontributetotheenergycostofthetransportation
ofwaterinthestateofCalifornia,wheremuchofthepopulationlivesincitiesthataredistant
fromfreshwatersources,especiallyintheSouthernhalfofthestate.Manyagriculturalregions
areinareasthathavelimitednaturalwaterresources,whereagricultureismadepossibleby
thevastnetworkofcanalsthattransportwaterfromtheColoradoRiver,SanJoaquinRiver,and
Sierramountains.Californiaproduces83%oftheworldalmonds,andthemajorityoftheseare
grownintheSanJoaquinValleyregion(Geisseler,2014).Theenergyrequiredtodeliverywater
toagriculturehasbeenstudiedandwasreportedoninaCaliforniaEnergyCommissionreport
onCalifornia’sWater-EnergyRelationship(Klein,2005).Onaverage,thedeliveryofwatertoa
farm,excludingirrigationpumpingenergy,whichisalreadyincludedinGREET’sestimatesfor
farmingGHGemissions,amountsto0.0003kWh/gallon.Thisnumberwasmultipliedbythe
amountofsurfaceandrainwater(i.e.greenandbluewater,asdefinedinsection7onwater
footprinting)requiredforalmondgrowinginCaliforniatodeterminetheaddedenergyfor
watertransportinCalifornia.
DairyMilk
Thelifecycleofdairymilkinvolvestheproductionofcornandotherfeedforcows,manure
managementandentericemissions,andtheallocationofemissionsbetweenmilkandmeat
production.Anin-depthanalysisofdairyfarmingwasoutsidethescopeofthisstudy.Instead,
thecarbonintensityofdairymilkwastakenfromtwo2013studiesthatexaminedthecradleto
farmgateandthefarmgatetoendoflifeemissionsofAmericanproduceddairymilk(Thoma,
2013a,2013b).Thesestudiesusedabiophysicalapproachtoallocationasdescribedintheir
2012publication(Thoma,2012).Emissionsfromtransporttoretailandrefrigerationwere
subtractedfortheRippleanalysisinordertobeconsistentwiththeassumptionsandscopefor
theLCAofnon-dairymilklifecycles.
Dairymilkisassumedtobepackagedinahigh-densitypolyethylene(HDPE)containerwith29%
recycledcontent.ThegreenhousegasemissionsfordairypackagingaretakenfromtheThoma
et.allifecycleassessmentofdairyproduction(Thoma,2013a).
InventoryDataSources
Thesourcesofdataforthelifecycleinputsforeachproductwereselectedtobeasrecentand
geographicallyrelevantaspossible.Arangeofpublishedliteratureandnationaldatasources
wereusedinthisLCA.Table1showsthesourceofdataforeachaspectofthelifecycle
assessmentmodeldescribedabove.
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Table1.LifeCycleInventoryDataSourcing
LifeCycleStage
Feedstock
production
Proteinisolation
Milkproduction
Packaging&EOL
Water
Consumption
RippleMilk
(Muehlbauer,
2016);(USDA,
2016)
RippleData
RippleData
(Kuczenski,2011)
(Mekonnen,
2010b)
AlmondMilk
SoyMilk
(Kendall,2015) (USDA,2016)
DairyMilk
*farm-to-farm
gate(Thoma,
2013b)
Ecoinvent
Ecoinvent
N/A
Ecoinvent
Ecoinvent
(Thoma,2013a)
(Scipioni,2012) (Scipioni,2012) (Thoma,2013a)
(Mekonnen,
(Mekonnen,
(Mekonnen,
2010b)
2010b)
2010a)
4. GreenhouseGasLCAModel
Lifecycleinventory(LCI)datareflectstheemissionsassociatedwithfarminginputs,process
fuels,transportsegments,andanyprocessorinputrelevanttoproduction.Emissionscanoccur
directly,asinthecaseoffertilizeroff-gassingornaturalgascombustion,orindirectly,asinthe
caseofinputstofarmingsuchasfertilizerorpesticides,whichreflecttheemissionsrequiredfor
production.
InthisLCA,emissionsthatwerecalculatedfromprocessinventorydatausetheemission
factorsintheGREET2016model.LCIdatainGREET2016areorganizedasacolumn(orarray)
ofenergyuseandemissionsvalues.AnLCIarraycanrepresentasingleprocessfuelor
feedstock,suchasnaturalgasusedforfuelproduction,oritcanrepresentaggregatedfuel
cycleresults,suchasethanoltransportanddistribution.
Forexample,theLCIarrayresultforU.S.averagenaturalgascombustedinastationary
reciprocatingengineispresentedinTable2.Thelifecycledataareorganizedintwoarraysin
thiscase,usingthemethodologyoftheGREETmodel,buttheresultscanbepresentedatany
levelofdisaggregation.ThefirstcolumnaccountsfortheWTTenergyuseandemissions
associatedwithnaturalgasrecovery(extraction)andtransport,processingtopipelinegas,and
pipelinedeliverytothepointofuse.Thesecondcolumnshowsnaturalgasengineemission
factorsandthethirdcolumnindicatesthetotalnaturalgasLCIarray.Thetableindicatesthat
mostoffuelcycleemissionsfornaturalgas(andallfossilfuels)arisefromthefuelcombustion
(thecarboninfuel)ratherthanfromfuelproduction.
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Table2.ExampleLCIDataforNaturalGasCombustedasaStationaryFuel(GREET_12015)
NaturalGasLife
CycleEmission
Factors(g/mmBtu)
VOC
CO
NOx
PM10
PM2.5
SOx
BC
OC
CH4
N2O
CO2
CO2c
Recovery,
Processing, Stationary
&Pipeline
Fuel
transport Combustion
10.36
2.54
32.19 24.97
40.56 41.05
0.56
3.51
0.49
3.51
12.02
0.27
0.15
0.58
0.16
1.50
207.42
1.06
1.42
0.35
6,747
59,363
6,830
59,413
Total
Emissions
12.90
57.16
81.61
4.07
3.99
12.29
0.73
1.66
208.48
1.77
66,110
66,243
TheLCIdataarecombined(multiplied)withlifecycleinputparameterstomodellifecycle
energyuseandemissionsassociatedwitheachpathwayinput.Lifecycleinputparameters
characterizeallpathwaysteps,includingfeedstockproduction,chemicalsandnaturalgasor
wasteheatforprocessing,fuelfordistribution,andfuelcombustion.Table4showsthemodel
inputsfortheRippleLCAmodel.
AllocationMethod
Allocationreferstothepartitioningofinputsandoutputstomorethanoneproductoutput.ISO
14044providesguidelinesonhowtohandleallocation.First,wheneverpossible,itshouldbe
avoidedbydividingtheunitprocessessothatthereisnoco-production,orbyexpandingthe
systemtotakeintoaccountthefunctionsoftheco-products.Whenallocationcannotbe
avoided,inputsandoutputsshouldbepartitionedbasedontheunderlyingphysical
relationshipsbetweentheproductsandtheiruses,suchasbyenergycontentormass.If
physicalrelationshipscannotbeusedasabasisforallocation,theninputsandoutputsshould
beallocatedinawaythatreflectstherelationshipoftheco-productstooneanother,suchas
theirrelativeeconomicmarketvalue.
TheproductionofpeaisolateforRipplemilkresultsintheco-productionofstarchandfiber
thatareusedasanimalfeed.Likewise,almondandsoymilkalsohaveco-products.Almond
shellsareburnedforelectricityandalmondhusksareusedforanimalfeed.Soymilkproduction
alsoresultsinananimalfeedco-product.
TheRippleprocessconvertspeafeedtopeaisolate.Peastarchisaco-productthatissoldas
animalfeed.AsimplifiedflowdiagramisshowninFigure7.ForthepurposesoftheLCA,
energyinputsandemissionswereallocatedtotheprocessedmaterialandthepeastarch.
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SeveraloptionsforallocationarepossiblewiththeresultsshowninTable3.Thestarchhasa
lowervaluethantheprocessedprotein.Thereforeaneconomicallocationwasselectedasthe
mostrepresentativeapproach.ThismethodisconsistentwiththeLCAofalmondsperformed
byUCDavis.
Figure7.EconomicAllocationProcessFlowDiagramforRipplePeas
Thevalueoftheprocessedpeaproteiniscalculatedfromthedifferenceinthepriceofthepea
feedandthestarch.Starchisvaluedatthepriceofcorn.Thereforethevalueofthepeafeedis
determinedbydifference,whichprovidesthebasisfortheeconomicallocation.
Table3.RippleCo-productAllocationMethod
Component
Pea
Starch
ProcessedPea
PeaAllocationFactor
Price
($/kg)
$0.25
$0.14
$0.32
Mass(kg)
1000
411.6
588.4
58.84%
Economic
Value($)
$249.12
$59.14
$189.98
76.26%
Protein
(kg)
220
82.5
137.5
62.50%
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Table4.LCAModelingInputs
Parameter
FarmingInputs
Nitrogen(lb/lb)
P2O5(lb/lb)
K2O(lb/lb)
Diesel(Btu/tonne)
Pesticides(g/tonne)
Herbicide(g/tonne)
CAWaterTransportEnergy(kWh/tonne)
Processing
Electricity(kWh/kgmilk)
NaturalGas(MJ/kgmilk)
Additives
Sunfloweroil(%bymass)
CaneSugar(%bymass)
AdditionalParameters
Proteincontentoffinishedmilk
Plantcontentoffinishedmilk(kg/kg)
Ripple
Milk
0.0052
0.0074
0.0148
519,149
42.9
300
0.213
3.191
1.40%
2.37%
3.31%
0.208
Almond
Milk
0.1070
0
0.1070
519,149
42.9
300
531.8
0.2182
2.0432
2.88%
0.41%
0.026
SoyMilk
0.006
0.017
0.028
519,149
42.9
300
0.218
2.043
2.84%
3.29%
0.123
Dairy
Milk1
3.38%
1.Dairymilkinputsarenotshownsincedairymilklifecycleemissionsarebasedonliteraturesourcesonly.
2.Almondmilkprocessinginputsareassumedtobethesameassoymilk.
LifeCycleImpactAssessment
TheGREETmodelisconfiguredtodetermineenergyinputs,GHGemissions,andcriteria
pollutantimpacts.ThisanalysisfocusesonGHGemissions.GHGemissionsareexpressedas
gramsofcarbondioxideequivalentperliterofmilk(gCO2e/L),andarereferredtoasthe
carbonintensity(CI).TheGHGemissionsconstituentsconsideredinthisanalysisareCO2,N2O,
CH4,CO,andvolatileorganiccompounds(VOCs).
Globalwarmingpotentials(GWP)(gCO2e/gconstituent)forCH4andN2Oaretakenfromthe
IntergovernmentalPanelonClimateChange(IPCC)globalwarmingpotential(GWP)values
(IPCC2007)fora100yeartimehorizon.COandVOCareoxidizedtoCO2intheatmosphere,
andthushaveaGWPof1whenexpressedasCO2(fullyoxidizedform).Theanalysisexcludes
theclimateimpactofsecondaryandhigherorderatmosphericspeciesthatarisefromdirect
emissions,includingozone,oxidesofnitrogen(NOx),andsecondaryaerosols.
5. GreenhouseGasLCAResults
Twoscenarioswereconsideredinthisanalysisduetothelackofprimarydataonthe
processingofalmondmilk.Inthefirstscenario,electricityandnaturalgasfacilityinputsfor
almondmilkproductionaretakenfromEcoinvent(Weidema,2013).Inthesecondscenario,the
processingenergyreportedbyRipplefacilitieswasusedforalmondprocessingaswell.
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Twofunctionalunitswerealsoconsideredinbothscenarios.Inthefirstcase,GHGemission
resultsareshownonaperliterofmilkbasis.Inthesecondcase,GHGemissionresultsare
shownintermsoftheamountofproteininaLofmilk.Theco-productcreditforRippleand
Almondmilkiscalculatedbasedonthefollowingformula:
Credit=(1-AllocationFactor)*(Farming+ProcessingEmissions)
Thefeedco-productresultsfromthefarmingandprocessingsteps,sotheallocationfactoris
onlyappliedtothesetwosteps.
Table5.Scenario1:GHGLifeCycleEmissions
Scenario 1: Baseline
1a. Volume Basis
Results (g CO2e/L milk)
Farming
Processing
Packaging & EOL
Co-Product Credit
Total (g CO2e/L milk)
Ripple
Almond
64.8
343
76.1
(96.9)
33.5
259
104.4
(16.5)
387
396
Soy
Dairy
31.2
262
104.4
1,273
112
82.3
397
1,467
1b. Protein Basis
Results (g CO2e/kg protein)
Farming
Processing
Packaging & EOL
Co-Product Credit
Total (g CO2e/kg protein in a L of milk)
Ripple
1,959
10,373
2,300
(2,928)
24,467
Almond
1,013
62,917
25,412
(4,016)
149,831
Soy
38,461
3,305
2,434
19,627
44,199
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Dairy
942
7,956
3,174
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LCA.6121.159.2017
Figure8.LifeCycleGHGsEmissionsonaProteinBasis
Table6.Scenario1:GHGLifeCycleEmissions
Scenario 2: Almond Milk Modeled Using Ripple Processing Data
2a. Volume Basis
Results (g CO2e/L milk)
Farming
Processing
Packaging & EOL
Co-Product Credit
Total (g CO2e/L milk)
Ripple
Almond
Soy
Dairy
64.8
343
76.1
(96.9)
33.5
337
104
(20.9)
31.2
341
104
1,273
112
82.3
484
475
476
1,467
2b. Protein Basis
Results (g CO2e/kg protein)
Farming
Processing
Packaging & EOL
Co-Product Credit
Total (g CO2e/kg protein in a L of milk)
Ripple
1,959
10,373
2,300
(2,928)
24,467
Almond
8,159
81,915
25,412
(5,089)
194,709
Soy
38,695
3,305
2,434
24,376
44,433
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Dairy
948
10,360
3,174
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Figure9.LifeCycleGHGEmissionsonaProteinBasis
6. WaterFootprintModel
Theamountoffreshwaterusedtoproduceacroporafoodproductcanbesubstantial.Water
footprintingisamethodforestimatingtheamountofwaterconsumedintheproductionanduseof
aproduct.Thewaterfootprintofaproductisdefinedasthetotalvolumeoffreshwaterthatisused
toproducetheproduct(Hoekstraetal.,2009).Thegrid-baseddynamicwaterbalancemodel
developedbyMekonnenandHoekstra,2010,computesadailysoilwaterbalanceandcalculates
cropwaterrequirements,actualcropwateruse(bothgreenandblue)andactualyields.
Awaterfootprintcanincludethreedifferentcategoriesofwaterconsumption:
•
•
•
Bluewater:Consumptivewateruseoriginatingfromground/surfacewater
Greenwater:Consumptivewateruseoriginatingfromrainwater
Greywater:Volumeofground/surfacewaterpolluted(requiredforassimilationof
fertilizersorpesticides)
Inthecaseofrainfedagriculture,bluewaterfootprintiszeroandgreenwateruseiscalculatedby
summingupevapotranspirationperdayoverthegrowingseasonoftheplant.Inthecaseof
irrigatedcrops,greenandbluewaterconsumptioniscalculatedbasedonsoilwaterbalance.The
greywaterfootprintmodeledbyMekonnenandHoekstrarefersonlytothewaterrequiredto
assimilatenitrogenfertilizerrunoff.Allthreecategoriesofwaterconsumptionareincludedinthis
waterfootprintanalysis(Mekonnen,2011).
WaterconsumptiondatacomefromtheMekonnenandHoekstraUnescoValueofWaterResearch
ReportSeriesnumbers47and48.RipplepeasaregrownintheNorthernUSandCanada.U.S.
averagevaluesareusedfortheotherthreeproductssinceRippleproductsmaybecompeting
againstarangeofmilkproductsfromalloverthecountry.Drypeas,almonds,andsoybeanwater
consumptionareoriginallyreportedincubicmeterspertonofcropandareadjustedbasedonthe
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amountofcropthatendsupinthefinishedmilktoshowthewaterfootprintperliterofmilkona
proteinbasis.Dairymilkwaterconsumptionisalreadyallocatedtothefinishedmilkproductandis
reportedintermsofcubicmeterspertonofmilk.Sincenon-dairymilksallhavesomeamountof
addedsugar,thewaterassociatedwithcanesugarproductionwasalsoincluded.
Table7showsthewaterfootprintoftheeachcropandfinishedmilkproduct.Theamountofwater
ittakestoproduceatonofalmondsisapproximately6.8timestheamountofwaterittakesto
produceatonofpeas.Butcomparedonaproteinbasisperliterofmilk,almondmilktakes5.7
timesasmuchwaterasRipplemilk.Dairymilkwaterconsumptionisapproximatelydoublethatof
Ripplemilk,andsoymilkwateruseisroughlyhalfthatofRipplemilk.
Table7.WaterFootprintResults
Product
Region
Water(m3/toncrop)
Water(m3/kgcrop)
Water(gal/Lmilkonaproteinbasis)
Peas,dry1
Saskatchewan
1,928
2.1
4,855
Almonds2
USAvg
13,055
14.4
26,263
Soybeans3
USAvg
1,662
1.8
2,182
Milk,1-6%fat4
USAvg
8215
N/A
7,321
1. Peas dried, shelled, whether or not skinned or split (Product code HS 71310)
2. Almonds, fresh or dried, shelled or peeled (Product code HS 080212)
3. Soya beans (Product code HS 120100)
4. Milk not concentrated & unsweetened exceeding 1% not exceeding 6% fat (Produce code HS 040120)
5. Dairy milk water use is reported in m3/ton of finished milk
Sources: Mekonnen, M.M. and Hoekstra, A.Y. (2010).Value of Water Research Report Series No. 47, UNESCO-IHE,
Delft, the Netherlands. The green, blue and grey water footprint of crops and derived crop products;
Mekonnen, M.M. and Hoekstra, A.Y. (2010). The green, blue and grey water footprint of farm animals and animal
products, Value of Water Research Report Series No. 48, UNESCO-IHE, Delft, the Netherlands.
Figure10showstherangeofwaterusevaluesacrossdifferentgeographicregions,broken
downbytheamountofblue,green,andgreywater.AsshowninFigure10,reportingonlythe
totalamountofwaterobscurestherelativeamountofblue,green,andgreywaterthat
contributestothattotal.Drypeasuseverylittlebluewaterinallofthelocationscited,and
noneinSaskatchewan.GreywateristhelargestcontributortoUSaveragewaterusefordry
peas,muchhigherthantheglobalaverageortheSaskatchewangreywaterpollutionnumbers.
Almondsaretheonlycropshownthatuseslargeamountofbluewater,inadditiontogreen
andgreywater.ThisislikelybecausealmondsintheUSaremostlygrowninthewaterscarce
CaliforniaregionoftheSanJoaquindelta,meaningthereisverylittlerainfallandmostofthe
waterusedisirrigationbasedorfromgroundwater.
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LCA.6121.159.2017
Figure10.WaterUseComparisonbyGeographicRegion
Waterscarcityreferstoeitherthelackofenoughwater(quantity)orlackofaccesstosafe
water(quality).Areaswithpoormanagementorlowrainfallandgroundwaterresourceare
liabletoexperiencemorewaterscarcity.TheUNEP/SocietyforEnvironmentalToxicologyand
Chemistry(SETAC)LifeCycleInitiativefoundedthewateruseLCA(WULCA)in2007tofocuson
wateruseassessmentandwaterfootprintingfromalifecycleperspective.Theyhavesince
developedamethodologyforassessingwaterscarcityisknownastheAWAREmethod
(AvailableWaterRemaining),representingtherelativeAvailableWAterREmainingperareaina
watershed,afterthedemandofhumansandaquaticecosystemshasbeenmet(WULCA,2016).
!
WaterScarcityFootprint=WaterConsumption×
"#$%&$'%&%()*+,-$./
Thegrouphasmadepublicthegoogleearthfileswiththeircalculatedwaterscarcityfactorsby
watershedforthewholeplanet.Warmercolorsindicatehigherlevelsofyearroundaverage
waterscarcityandcoldercolorsindicatelowerlevelsofscarcity.Ascouldbeexpected,thedrier
climateoftheSouthwesternUSresultsinhigherlevelsofwaterscarcity.
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LCA.6121.159.2017
Figure11.WaterScarcityMapofNorthAmerica
TakingintoaccountthewaterscarcityfactorsforCalifornia,Idaho,andSaskatchewan,which
are88,1.7,and6,respectively,yieldtheresultsshowninTable8.Withwaterscarcitytaken
intoaccount,growingalmondsrequiresabout100timesasmuchwaterpertonofcropasdry
peas.Theamountofalmondthatendsupinalmondmilkrequires93timesmorewaterona
proteinbasis.AssumingthewaterscarcityfactorforCaliforniaresultsindairymilkrequiring
about28timesmorewaterperliterofmilkonbothavolumetricandproteinbasis.
Table8.WaterFootprintResults
Product
Region
WaterScarcityFactor6
Water(m3/toncrop)
Water(m3/kgcrop)
Water(m3/Lmilk)
Water(gal/Lmilk)
Water(gal/Lmilkonaproteinbasis)
Peas,dry1
Saskatchewan
6
11,568
12.8
2.86
755
22,816
Almonds2
USAvg
88
1,148,840
1,266.4
33.153
8,758
2,131,354
Milk,1-6%fat4
USAvg
88
72,248
82.43
21,775
644,229
1. Peas dried, shelled, whether or not skinned or split (Product code HS 71310)
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LCA.6121.159.2017
2. Almonds, fresh or dried, shelled or peeled (Product code HS 080212)
3. Soya beans (Product code HS 120100)
4. Milk not concentrated & unsweetened exceeding 1% not exceeding 6% fat (Produce code HS 040120)
5. Dairy milk water use is reported in m3/ton of finished milk
6. http://www.wulca-waterlca.org/project.html
7. Discussion
TheGHGemissionsassociatedwithgrowingyellowpeasaremuchlowerthantheemissions
associatedwithalmondgrowing.However,duetotherelativelysmallamountofalmondsthat
endupinalmondmilk,thelifecycleimpactsofalmondmilkonavolumebasisareverylow.
However,theactualnutritionalvalueofthemilkiscloselylinkedtotheproteincontent.When
youcompareRipplemilktoalmondmilkonaproteinbasis,almondmilkhasGHGemissions
thatareeighttimesashighasRipplemilk.Sincedairymilkishighinproteincontent,whileits
GHGemissionsarethreetimesashighasRipplemilkonavolumetricbasis,theyareonlyabout
twiceashighonaproteinbasis.SoymilkhasaverysimilarGHGprofiletothatofRipplemilk,
whichistobeexpectedgiventhattheyarebothnitrogen-fixinglegumeswithahighprotein
content.
Animportantsourceofuncertaintyinthisstudyistheenergyusedintheprocessingofalmond
andsoybeancropsintoaproteinisolateandfinishednon-dairymilk.Theprocessenergyfor
RipplemilkcomesfromRipplefacilities,andhasahighlevelofconfidenceassociatedwithit.
However,theprocessenergyforsoymilkwastakenfromastudythatreliedontheEcoinvent
database,whichtypicallyincludesEuropeanprocessdata,wherepracticesmaydifferfrom
thoseintheUnitedStates.Almondmilkprocessdatawasnotavailableatall,andsotwo
scenarioswererun,oneusingthesoyprocessingdatafromEcoinventandoneusingthepea
processingdatafromRipple’sprimarydata.However,thealmondlifecycleresultswere
comparedtotherecentUCDavisstudyofalmondfarming,andthetotallifecycleGHGswere
foundtobecomparable,withourstudyfindingacarbonintensityofroughly1.2kgCO2e/kg
almondscomparedtotheUCDavisstudy’sfindingof1.6kgCO2e/kgalmonds.
Alimitationofthestudyisthatmostnon-dairymilkshaveseveraladdedingredientsinorderto
improvethetasteprofile,nutritionalcontent,andtextureofthefinishedproduct.Theadded
sugarinnon-dairymilkwasincludedboththeGHGanalysisandthewaterfootprint.Ripplemilk
alsocontainssunfloweroil,andtheGHGemissionsfromthiswereincludedintheRippleLCA.
However,otheradditivessuchasemulsifiers,flavorenhancers,andvitaminswereexcluded
fromthisstudy.Inaddition,theexactformulaforsoymilkandalmondmilkproductswasnot
known,andthereforemayincludeadditionalingredientssimilartosunfloweroilthatwerenot
included.
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Acronyms
Btu CO2e GHG HHV LCA LCI
LHV MJ
mmBtu
MWh |
Britishthermalunits
Carbondioxide-equivalent
GreenhouseGas
Higherheatingvalue
Lifecycleassessment
Lifecycleinventory LowerheatingValue
Megajoule(=947.83Btu)
MillionBritishthermalunits
megawatt-hour
19 RippleMilkLCAConfidentialCopyright©2017
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Disclaimer
ThisreportwaspreparedbyLifeCycleAssociates,LLCforRipple,Inc.LifeCycleAssociatesisnot
liabletoanythirdpartieswhomightmakeuseofthiswork.Nowarrantyorrepresentation,
expressorimplied,ismadewithrespecttotheaccuracy,completeness,and/orusefulnessof
informationcontainedinthisreport.Finally,noliabilityisassumedwithrespecttotheuseof,
orfordamagesresultingfromtheuseof,anyinformation,methodorprocessdisclosedinthis
report.Inacceptingthisreport,thereaderagreestotheseterms.
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