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Did you know that Ecuador is the largest in the world exporter of bananas?
Earlier in my life, I (Anna Lia) spent a year in the beautiful South American country. Here I visited a banana plantation and have seen with my own eyes the massive water consumption and continued deforestation necessary to meet the global demand for the yellow fruit. The banana that you eat on the go brings a story with it.
Have you ever thought about the journey of the banana from the plantation in the south to your shopping cart? And what climate and environmental impacts does it bring with it?
So has the English professor Mike Bernes-Lee when back in 2009 he wrote the book “How Bad Are Bananas”.
In the book, the reader gets an introduction to the climate footprint of all things, from the telephone to the motorcycle to the banana.
The method used by Mike Berners-Lee to uncover the environmental impact of bananas is called a Life Cycle Assessment, or most often just one LCA (Life Cycle Assessment).
How is an LCA performed?
The LCA process consists of four basic steps and follows the internationally standardized methods ISO 14040 and ISO 14044. The process consists of defining a goal and scope of the LCA, carrying out a collection and mapping of data, and then assessing the environmental impacts.
The results from each stage are continuously interpreted to maintain a common thread throughout the analysis, which ensures that the finished LCA becomes value-creating and operational.
Now let's take the steps one at a time.
- Definition of purpose: Here the company defines the purpose of the LCA. Why do we want to do an LCA? What would we like to achieve? And who is the target audience? There can be several different reasons why an LCA might be a good idea. They include new regulatory requirements or market pressure from customers/partners for increased transparency and documentation.
- Definition of scope: With the purpose of the analysis in place, one can move on to defining how large and far-reaching an analysis is required to meet our objectives with the work. Specifically, this step looks at which phases of the life cycle should be included and which environmental factors the analysis should focus on.
- Data collection and mapping: Now the data collection begins. In this step, the foundations of the analysis are laid; work is made to ensure that the highest quality data is available. The more specific data that one can collect for data overview, the better. It forms the basis for the subsequent LCA calculations.
- Environmental Impact Assessment: The final step includes the calculations themselves. Data are analysed and translated into concrete environmental impacts such as CO2 emissions, water consumption or material consumption. The analysis may also include a comparison of environmental impacts across the product category and possibly with other similar products in the market.
Case: Oatly uses the LCA results to differentiate itself in the market.
An LCA can thus help to comply with the latest sustainability legislation, to product development and reduce emissions in production, as well as to take a greener position in the market, where brand credibility is crucial. This gives customers peace of mind and full insight into the products.
Oatly, which produces oat milk, is a great example of how to leverage the LCA to drive increased sales through credible and well-documented communication about its products. The total carbon footprint of their products is clearly presented on the packaging, which adds transparency for customers and other businesses alike. At the same time, it creates a direct competitive advantage because it strengthens credibility and meets the demands of consumers, investors and authorities alike.
It also creates an incentive for continuous improvement and can be actively used in both storytelling, product development and marketing — all elements that provide a narrative competitive advantage.
Evidence that Oatly publishes on their products is exactly what the EU's Green Claims directive and the Consumer Ombudsman looks for when companies use claims such as “climate friendly”, “sustainable” or “Eco-friendly”.
Such product-level documentation is exactly what an LCA can provide.
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