RIA4FOOD | Mul i-Ac o Resea ch and
Inno a ion App oaches o Func ional Food
101131479
Documen name: LCA Goal & Scope
Funded by he Eu opean Union. Views and opinions exp essed a e
howe e hose o he au ho (s) only and do no necessa ily e lec
hose o he Eu opean Union o Eu opean Resea ch Execu i e
Agency (REA). Nei he he Eu opean Union no he g an ing au ho i y
can be held esponsible o hem.
G an ag eemen No 101131479.
LCA Goal & Scope
Funded by he Eu opean Union. Views and opinions exp essed a e howe e hose o he au ho (s)
only and do no necessa ily e lec hose o he Eu opean Union o Eu opean Resea ch Execu i e
Agency (REA). Nei he he Eu opean Union no he g an ing au ho i y can be held esponsible o
hem. G an ag eemen No 101131479.
2
P ojec De ails
Ac onym
RIA4FOOD
Ti le
Mul i-Ac o Resea ch and Inno a ion App oaches o Func ional
Food
Coo dina o
REZOS BRANDS ANONYMI EMPORIKI ETERIA IDON DIATROFIS
G an Ag eemen #
101131479
S a ing da e
01-11-2023
Du a ion
48 mon hs
Call
HORIZON-MSCA-2022-SE-01
Topic
HORIZON-MSCA-2022-SE-01-01
Type o ac ion
HORIZON TMA MSCA S a Exchanges
Websi e
h ps:// ia4 ood.eu/
Conso ium
REZOS BRANDS ANONYMI EMPORIKI ETERIA IDON DIATROFIS
(REZOS)
PANEPISTIMIO PATRON (UPAT)
KYPRIAKO IDRYMA EREVNON GIA TI MYIKI DISTROFIA (CING)
UNIVERSITATEA DE STIINTE AGRICOLE SI MEDICINA VETERINARA
CLUJ NAPOCA (USAMV)
UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DEL PIEMONTE ORIENTALE AMEDEO
AVOGADRO (UPO)
NOVAMECHANICS LIMITED (NOVAM)
BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES RESEARCH CENTER ALEXANDER FLEMING
(FLEMING)
INSPIRE SCIENCE SRL (INSPSCI)
UDRUZENJE ZA PREDUZETNISTVO I INOVACIJE FOODSCALE HUB
(FSH)
Documen De ails
Ti le
LCA Goal & Scope
Lead Bene icia y
FSH
Wo k Package
WP5 – Sus ainabili y assessmen
Dissemina ion le el
Sensi i e – Limi ed unde he condi ions o he G an Ag eemen
Type
R – Documen , epo
Au ho s
Sunčica Vasilje ić
Ma ina A nau S e ano ić
Pee e iew
His o y o changes
Ve sion
Publica ion da e
Changes
0.1
01.07.2025.
1s d a
LCA Goal & Scope
Funded by he Eu opean Union. Views and opinions exp essed a e howe e hose o he au ho (s)
only and do no necessa ily e lec hose o he Eu opean Union o Eu opean Resea ch Execu i e
Agency (REA). Nei he he Eu opean Union no he g an ing au ho i y can be held esponsible o
hem. G an ag eemen No 101131479.
3
Table o Con en s
1 In oduc ion .................................................................................................................... 4
2 Goal o he S udy ............................................................................................................. 4
2.1 Objec i es ................................................................................................................. 4
2.2 In ended Audiences ................................................................................................... 5
3 Scope o he S udy ........................................................................................................... 5
3.1 P oduc Func ion and P oduc Sys em Desc ip ion ...................................................... 6
3.2 Sys em Bounda ies .................................................................................................... 6
3.3 Func ional Uni .......................................................................................................... 6
3.4 Da a Sou ces and Da a Quali y ................................................................................... 7
3.5 Alloca ion and Impac Assessmen Me hods ............................................................... 7
3.6 Assump ions, limi a ions, and u u e upda es .............................................................. 7
3.7 C i ical e iew ............................................................................................................ 8
4 Closing Rema ks ............................................................................................................. 9
LCA Goal & Scope
Funded by he Eu opean Union. Views and opinions exp essed a e howe e hose o he au ho (s)
only and do no necessa ily e lec hose o he Eu opean Union o Eu opean Resea ch Execu i e
Agency (REA). Nei he he Eu opean Union no he g an ing au ho i y can be held esponsible o
hem. G an ag eemen No 101131479.
4
1 In oduc ion
The RIAFOOD p ojec aims o accele a e he ansi ion owa d esilien , heal hy, and sus ainable
ood sys ems by suppo ing esponsible inno a ion h oughou he ood alue chain. In his
con ex , Wo k Package 5 (WP5) ocuses on sus ainabili y assessmen , including he applica ion
o Li e Cycle Assessmen (LCA) o e alua e he en i onmen al and nu i ional bene i s o he
inno a ions de eloped wi hin he p ojec .
This documen p esen s he d a e sion o he Goal and Scope de ini ion o he LCA s udies o
be conduc ed unde WP5. The LCA will ollow ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 s anda ds and will
con ibu e o he deli e able D5.2 en i led "Repo on en i onmen al and nu i ional bene i s
ela ed o p ojec inno a ions”.
Gi en he dynamic and inno a ion-d i en na u e o he RIA4FOOD p ojec , his documen se es
as a li ing d a and will be e ined h oughou he cou se o he p ojec as addi ional in o ma ion
becomes a ailable and as he p oduc p o o ypes and sys em bounda ies a e inalized.
2 Goal o he S udy
The goal o his Li e Cycle Assessmen (LCA) is o e alua e he en i onmen al, heal h- ela ed,
and economic impac s o selec ed unc ional ood inno a ions de eloped wi hin he RIA4FOOD
p ojec . These inno a ions span ac oss he s ages o p oduc ion, p ocessing, and consump ion,
and will be analysed in e ms o hei con ibu ion o sus ainable ood sys ems.
The s udy aims o iden i y key en i onmen al ho spo s, assess po en ial imp o emen s, and
suppo in o med decision-making o he op imiza ion and scaling o bio-based, ci cula , and
esou ce-e icien solu ions ac oss selec ed case s udies.
Fu he mo e, i p omo es a sys emic sus ainabili y pe spec i e by in eg a ing en i onmen al
pe o mance wi h heal h- ela ed unc ionali y and economic ele ance. This aligns wi h he ole
o LCA in WP5, whe e p ima y objec i e is o assess he en i onmen al impac s o inal ood
p oduc s, while also conside ing heal h- ela ed bene i s and economic implica ions s emming
om he ma e ials and p ocesses used. LCA will p o ide quan i iable indica o s ha can
suppo e idence-based decision-making o a me s and ood p oduce s, enabling hem o
iden i y en i onmen al and cos ho spo s ac oss he ag icul u al and p ocessing s ages and o
op imize he use o wa e , ene gy, and chemical inpu s acco dingly.
The esul s o his LCA will be used in e nally o in o m de elopmen and ex e nally in
communica ion, dissemina ion, and po en ial policy- ela ed discussions, while espec ing
con iden iali y o p op ie a y da a and aligning wi h he i e a i e na u e o he p ojec ’s
inno a ion cycles.
2.1 Objec i es
This s udy e alua es he en i onmen al, heal h- ela ed and economic impac s ela ed o
selec ed RIA4FOOD inno a ions by applying Li e Cycle Assessmen in acco dance wi h ISO
14040 and ISO 14044 s anda ds. The assessmen includes he iden i ica ion o key
en i onmen al impac s ac oss he alue chains o inno a i e ood p oduc s and p ocesses
de eloped wi hin he p ojec .
LCA Goal & Scope
Funded by he Eu opean Union. Views and opinions exp essed a e howe e hose o he au ho (s)
only and do no necessa ily e lec hose o he Eu opean Union o Eu opean Resea ch Execu i e
Agency (REA). Nei he he Eu opean Union no he g an ing au ho i y can be held esponsible o
hem. G an ag eemen No 101131479.
5
Speci ically, he LCA will:
• Quan i y he en i onmen al impac s associa ed wi h each inal ood p oduc de eloped
wi hin RIA4FOOD, ac oss he ele an s ages o p oduc ion, p ocessing, and
consump ion;
• Iden i y en i onmen al ho spo s and p o ide e idence-based insigh s in o po en ial
mi iga ion s a egies, including changes o ma e ials, ene gy use, ag icul u al p ac ices,
and p ocessing me hods;
• Compa e inno a i e app oaches (e.g., p ecision ag icul u e echniques o no el bio-
based ing edien s) wi h con en ional o baseline al e na i es, whe e app op ia e;
• E alua e and con as he en i onmen al pe o mance o he wo unc ional ood
p o o ypes de eloped in he p ojec , and compa e hem o ele an e e ence p oduc s i
da a a ailabili y pe mi s;
• Suppo da a-d i en decision-making o a me s and ood p oduce s by p o iding
quan i a i e indica o s o en i onmen al and cos - ela ed impac s, including he use o
wa e , ene gy, and chemicals h oughou he alue chain;
• Con ibu e o a b oade sus ainabili y assessmen by in eg a ing LCA indings wi h
complemen a y da a on nu i ional p ope ies and economic pe o mance, whe e
easible.
2.2 In ended Audiences
This p ojec epo is in ended o suppo he RIA4FOOD communica ion o he en i onmen al
and heal h- ela ed, and economic bene i s o p ojec inno a ions o bo h in e nal and ex e nal
audiences. These audiences may include:
• RIA4FOOD p ojec pa ne s;
• The Eu opean Commission and ele an EU agencies;
• Resea che s and p ac i ione s in he ields o LCA, nu i ion, ag icul u e, and sus ainable
ood sys ems;
• Policy make s and public ins i u ions in ol ed in sus ainable ood s a egies;
• Food p oduce s, a me s, and o he end-use s and decision-make s in he ood alue
chain;
• The wide inno a ion and sus ainabili y communi y.
The ISO s anda d on LCA includes a se o speci ic equi emen s o s udies in ended o
communica e p oduc - o-p oduc compa isons o he public. Whe e explici compa a i e
s a emen s a e made ega ding he en i onmen al impac s o di e en p oduc s, his s udy aims
o mee hose equi emen s, ensu ing me hodological igo and anspa ency in line wi h ISO
14040/14044. A c i ical e iew will be conside ed when such compa a i e asse ions a e made.
3 Scope o he S udy
This sec ion ou lines he me hodological amewo k applied in he LCA, including he de ini ion
o he p oduc sys em, sys em bounda ies, unc ional uni , da a sou ces, assump ions,
alloca ion p ocedu es, and p o isions o quali y assu ance and e iew.
LCA Goal & Scope
Funded by he Eu opean Union. Views and opinions exp essed a e howe e hose o he au ho (s)
only and do no necessa ily e lec hose o he Eu opean Union o Eu opean Resea ch Execu i e
Agency (REA). Nei he he Eu opean Union no he g an ing au ho i y can be held esponsible o
hem. G an ag eemen No 101131479.
6
3.1 P oduc Func ion and P oduc Sys em Desc ip ion
The LCA will co e selec ed inno a ions de eloped unde he RIA4FOOD p ojec , which include
imp o emen s in ood p oduc ion, p ocessing, and he o mula ion o new unc ional ood
p oduc s. The sys ems unde analysis will be de ined based on he speci ic cha ac e is ics o
each case s udy.
The LCA will speci ically assess wo unc ional ood p o o ypes en iched wi h bioac i e
compounds, de eloped wi hin he p ojec . These p o o ypes a e s ill unde de elopmen ;
he e o e, hei composi ion, heal h ele ance, and in ended use will be upda ed as addi ional
da a becomes a ailable.
Compa isons may also be made be ween:
• RIA4FOOD’s inno a i e p ac ices and con en ional p oduc ion/p ocessing me hods
(e.g., p ecision s. adi ional ag icul u e);
• The wo unc ional ood p o o ypes de eloped unde he p ojec ;
• Ma ke -a ailable e e ence p oduc s, whe e ele an and easible.
The de ini ion o he p oduc sys ems and hei echnological bounda ies will be e ined in
collabo a ion wi h ele an pa ne s and based on inpu s om WP1 – WP4.
3.2 Sys em Bounda ies
The sys em bounda ies o he s udy will ollow a c adle- o-ga e o c adle- o-g a e app oach,
depending on he na u e o each case s udy and he a ailabili y o eliable da a. A minimum,
he ollowing li e cycle s ages will be included:
• Raw ma e ial p oduc ion (including ag icul u al and bio-based inpu s);
• P ocessing and manu ac u ing;
• Packaging and dis ibu ion.
Whe e easible, addi ional s ages will be assessed:
• Ups eam p ocesses (e.g., e ilize o ene gy p oduc ion);
• Downs eam p ocesses (e.g., consume use, p epa a ion, and end-o -li e disposal).
Labo a o y-scale expe imen s ha ela e o he de elopmen o bioac i e compounds and hei
heal h bene i s will be included a his s age o he p ojec . Da a a e cu en ly being collec ed
h ough LCI empla es dis ibu ed o pa ne s. These expe imen s a e conside ed pa o he
inno a ion p ocess and will be e iewed o ele ance and comple eness.
Some s ages (e.g., end-o -li e) may be excluded o assessed h ough sensi i i y analysis i
eliable da a canno be ob ained. All exclusions will be clea ly documen ed wi h jus i ica ion.
3.3 Func ional Uni
The unc ional uni will be de ined o each p oduc sys em indi idually, based on i s in ended
unc ionali y and use. In cases whe e sys ems a e compa ed (e.g., he wo p o o ypes o an
inno a ion e sus a con en ional p oduc ), a common unc ional uni will be applied o ensu e
me hodological consis ency and compa abili y o esul s.
LCA Goal & Scope
Funded by he Eu opean Union. Views and opinions exp essed a e howe e hose o he au ho (s)
only and do no necessa ily e lec hose o he Eu opean Union o Eu opean Resea ch Execu i e
Agency (REA). Nei he he Eu opean Union no he g an ing au ho i y can be held esponsible o
hem. G an ag eemen No 101131479.
7
As he unc ional ood p o o ypes a e s ill unde de elopmen , he unc ional uni will be
de e mined once he p oduc composi ion, bioac i e compound con en , and consump ion
scena ios a e su icien ly es ablished.
To enable ongoing in e p e a ion o collec ed da a and i e a i e e inemen o sys em modelling,
p o isional unc ional uni s may be applied in he ea ly s ages o he assessmen . These se e
as p ac ical e e ence poin s o suppo bounda y se ing and scena io de elopmen p io o
inal p oduc de ini ion. Examples include:
• Mass-based uni s (e.g., pe 100 g o p oduc ), o
• Nu i ional deli e y (e.g., pe e ec i e daily in ake o bioac i e compound).
The inal de ini ion o he unc ional uni will e lec he p oduc ’s de ined heal h- ela ed claim
and consume con ex and will be aligned wi h he scope o he sus ainabili y assessmen .
3.4 Da a Sou ces and Da a Quali y
P ima y da a will be collec ed om RIA4FOOD p ojec pa ne s, including echnical inpu s om
pilo ac i i ies, expe imen al esul s, and s akeholde eedback. These will include in o ma ion
on ma e ial inpu s, ene gy use, p ocess e iciencies, and ou pu s.
Seconda y da a will be sou ced om es ablished LCA da abases and li e a u e whe e
applicable.
The quali y o da a will be e alua ed based on: echnological ep esen a i eness, geog aphical
ele ance, empo al ele ance, consis ency and comple eness.
Unce ain y and da a gaps will be documen ed. Conse a i e assump ions will be made whe e
necessa y and anspa en ly epo ed.
3.5 Alloca ion and Impac Assessmen Me hods
Alloca ion p ocedu es will be de ined o each case s udy based on he cha ac e is ics o he
sys em unde analysis. Whe e co-p oduc s o by-p oduc s a e p esen , alloca ion may be based
on physical ela ionships (e.g., mass o ene gy con en ) and economic alue.
The choice o alloca ion me hod will be clea ly jus i ied in each case.
En i onmen al impac s will be assessed using midpoin impac ca ego ies, which may include:
clima e change (global wa ming po en ial), eu ophica ion ( e es ial and aqua ic), wa e use,
esou ce deple ion.
The inal selec ion o impac ca ego ies will depend on da a a ailabili y, p oduc cha ac e is ics,
and ele ance o p ojec objec i es.
3.6 Assump ions, limi a ions, and u u e upda es
This s udy is based on he cu en s a e o knowledge, p elimina y p oduc de elopmen , and
ongoing da a collec ion wi hin he RIA4FOOD p ojec . The assump ions made in his phase
e lec he ea ly-s age na u e o he inno a ions and he inhe en unce ain ies associa ed wi h
hem. The ini ial se o Li e Cycle In en o y (LCI) empla es is being dis ibu ed alongside his
documen , ocusing on co e p ocess in o ma ion – such as ma e ial and ene gy inpu s,
LCA Goal & Scope
Funded by he Eu opean Union. Views and opinions exp essed a e howe e hose o he au ho (s)
only and do no necessa ily e lec hose o he Eu opean Union o Eu opean Resea ch Execu i e
Agency (REA). Nei he he Eu opean Union no he g an ing au ho i y can be held esponsible o
hem. G an ag eemen No 101131479.
8
equipmen use, and emissions – wi hou ye add essing economic o heal h- ela ed aspec s.
As such, his ini ial LCA will se e as a ounda ion o i e a i e de elopmen , and se e al aspec s
o he assessmen a e expec ed o be p og essi ely e ined. Fu u e LCA i e a ions will depend
on bo h he comple eness o incoming da a and he e olu ion o p oduc de elopmen wi hin
RIA4FOOD.
In pa icula , he ollowing pa ame e s a e subjec o u he cla i ica ion, da a collec ion, o
me hodological e inemen :
• Final composi ion and o mula ion o unc ional ood p o o ypes;
• Nu i ional cha ac e iza ion and subs an ia ion o heal h claims;
• De ails o consume use and p epa a ion scena ios;
• Packaging speci ica ions and end-o -li e ea men ;
• Sys em bounda ies and o eg ound p ocess con igu a ions;
• Func ional uni alignmen o compa ison pu poses.
Gi en he inno a ion-d i en and i e a i e na u e o RIA4FOOD, he LCA will e ol e o e ime.
P o isional esul s gene a ed du ing ea ly i e a ions will suppo in e nal e lec ion and design
decisions, while subsequen e sions may in eg a e mo e obus da ase s and modelling
s uc u es.
Fu u e upda es o he LCA will e lec :
• Ini ial and upda ed LCI da a collec ed om pa ne s ( ocusing i s on ma e ial and
ene gy inpu s, equipmen use, and emissions), ollowed by p o o ype-speci ic
in o ma ion as p oduc de elopmen p og esses;
• Ha moniza ion wi h complemen a y assessmen s o nu i ional p ope ies and
economic implica ions, whe e applicable;
• Me hodological imp o emen s and sensi i i y analysis based on s akeholde inpu and
scena io es ing.
This app oach ensu es ha he LCA emains a li ing and esponsi e ool, capable o cap u ing
he dynamic p ocess o inno a ion and suppo ing in o med decision-making ac oss he p ojec
li ecycle.
3.7 C i ical e iew
In line wi h ISO 14044, ex e nal e iew will be conside ed i he esul s a e used o compa a i e
asse ions in ended o public disclosu e. The e iew p ocess and le el will be de e mined
based on:
• In ended audience and communica ion s a egy;
• Le el o da a unce ain y and me hodological complexi y;
• S akeholde in e es and expec ed impac o indings.
The scope and o ma o he e iew will be de e mined in collabo a ion wi h he p ojec
coo dina o and based on he inal applica ion o he LCA esul s.
LCA Goal & Scope
Funded by he Eu opean Union. Views and opinions exp essed a e howe e hose o he au ho (s)
only and do no necessa ily e lec hose o he Eu opean Union o Eu opean Resea ch Execu i e
Agency (REA). Nei he he Eu opean Union no he g an ing au ho i y can be held esponsible o
hem. G an ag eemen No 101131479.
9
4 Closing Rema ks
This documen ep esen s he i s consolida ed d a o he Goal and Scope de ini ion o he
Li e Cycle Assessmen ac i i ies unde RIA4FOOD Wo k Package 5. I p o ides a anspa en and
adap able me hodological amewo k ha will e ol e alongside he p ojec ’s inno a ions.
The nex s ep in ol es collec ing co e p ocess da a h ough he dis ibu ed LCI empla es. These
inpu s will enable he modelling o p oduc sys ems and he iden i ica ion o po en ial da a gaps
and assump ions. Fu he e inemen o his documen and he unde lying assessmen s will be
conduc ed as mo e de ailed in o ma ion becomes a ailable.
This documen will be e ised and upda ed h oughou he p ojec as mo e de ailed in o ma ion
becomes a ailable.
