Screening life cycle assessment (LCA) of tomato ketchup: a case study

A screening life cycle assessment (LCA) of tomato ketchup has been carried out. The purpose was to identify ‘hot-spots', that is parts of the life-cycle that are important to the total environmental impact. The system investigated includes agricultural production, industrial refining, packaging, transportation, consumption and waste management. Energy use and emissions were quantified and some of the potential environmental effects assessed. Packaging and food processing were found to be hot-spots for many, but not all, of the impact categories investigated. For primary energy use, the storage time in a refrigerator (household phase) was found to be a critical parameter.