Assessing the carbon footprint of cheese production: A study on mass and nutritional indicators

Ilija Đekić; Nada Šmigić; Jelena Miočinović; Zorana Miloradović

doi:10.18485/meattech.2025.66.1.7

Ilija Đekić Department of Food Safety and Quality Management, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Belgrade https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8132-8299
Nada Šmigić Department of Food Safety and Quality Management, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Belgrade https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5245-1239
Jelena Miočinović Department of Animal Source Food Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Belgrade https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1634-0555
Zorana Miloradović Department of Animal Source Food Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Belgrade https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1703-4656

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18485/meattech.2025.66.1.7

Keywords: carbon footprint, nutrition, cheese, dairy, green skills

Abstract

Cheese production involves various processes, with milk production contributing over 85% of the overall environmental impact. This study used a simplified life cycle assessment to estimate the carbon footprint of 13 cheese varieties based on milk quantity (1 L of raw cow milk emits 1 kg CO_2e). Results were presented in relation to cheese mass and nutritional values (protein, fat, energy). Related to cheese mass, Parmesan had the highest carbon footprint (16.40 kg CO_2e/kg), which correlated to milk quantity. However, when nutritional values were used as functional units, ricotta showed the highest carbon footprint for protein (88.62 kg CO_2e/kg), and cottage cheese for fat (157.18 kg CO_2e/kg) and energy (1.48 kg CO_2e/1000 kJ). Spearman correlation coefficients for carbon footprint confirmed the correlations between the nutritional values (p<0.05), but no correlation was found between carbon footprint and cheese mass (p>0.05). Promoting nutritional values as functional units could encourage consumer alignment of dietary choices with sustainability goals.