Environmental footprint of milk production from Mediterranean sheep systems

In the Euro-Mediterranean countries the sheep milk production is a significant sector that is currently going through a deep structural crisis. Since eco-sustainability of production systems and mitigation of climate change are European priorities, optimizing the environmental footprint of dairy sheep farms could become the access key of farmers for receiving financial support and achieve a more environmentally- sound agriculture. The main objectives of this paper were to compare the environmental impacts of sheep milk production from three different dairy farms in Sardinia (Italy), characterized by different input levels, and to identify the hotspots for improving the environmental performances of each farm, by using an LCA analysis. The LCA conducted using different functional units (1 kg of Fat Protein Corrected Milk and 1 ha of Utilized Agricultural Area) and different assessment methods (IPCC, ReCiPe, and Blue Virtual Water) led to a more objective evaluation of the environmental performances of farms.