This collection features five peer-reviewed literature reviews on life cycle assessment (LCA) of crops. The first chapter discusses the application of LCA to agricultural systems and highlights key issues associated with its implementation, including delimitation of systems boundaries, defining the functional unit, handling coproduction, and the choosing of impact assessment methods. The second chapter explores the concepts of LCA and the coffee value chain. The chapter discusses how carbon footprint performances can be used to upgrade coffee value chains. The third chapter assesses the environmental impact of oil palm production during cultivation and as a result of land use change for new plantations. The chapter describes the principles and modelling steps of LCA, as well as the challenges ahead regarding further development and application. The fourth chapter reviews the core principles of LCA methodology, the state of the art of LCA for fruits and associated key challenges. The first complete LCA case study for export mango is also discussed. The final chapter assesses the environmental impact of banana production and highlights the importance of LCA in influencing the adoption of practices that can reduce or offset the carbon footprint of the banana value chain.

Developing the Global Bioeconomy: Technical, Market, and Environmental Lessons from Bioenergy brings together expertise from three IEA-Bioenergy subtasks on pyrolysis, international trade, and biorefineries to review the bioenergy sector and draw useful lessons for the full deployment of the bioeconomy. Despite the vast amount of politically driven strategies, there is little understanding on how current markets will transition towards a global bioeconomy. The question is not only how the bioeconomy can be developed, but also how it can be developed sustainably in terms of economic and environmental concerns. To answer this question, this book's expert chapter authors seek to identify the types of biorefineries that are expected to be implemented and the types of feedstock that may be used. They also provide historical analysis of the developments of biopower and biofuel markets, integration opportunities into existing supply chains, and the conditions that would need to be created and enhanced to achieve a global biomass trade system that could support a global bioeconomy. As expectations that a future bioeconomy will rely on a series of tradable commodities, this book provides a central accounting of the state of the discussion in a multidisciplinary approach that is ideal for research and academic experts, and analysts in all areas of the bioenergy, biofuels, and bioeconomy sectors, as well as those interested in energy policy and economics.