Carbon footprint in food supply chains: a review of the literature of accounting methods for greenhouse gas emissions

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24302/drd.v16.6078

Abstract

The work aims to analyze in national and international literature the main methods of accounting for greenhouse gases (GHG) applied to food systems in different supply chains, as well as, based on the review, to point out the main dilemmas faced when apply the methods to the Brazilian reality. The methodology consisted of searching three national and international journal databases: Web of Science; CAPES Journal Portal; and Google Scholar, including works published up to august 2023, using keywords. From the bibliometric analysis, a predominance of GHG accounting methods based on Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is observed, while significant difficulties are found in the literature when applying the method to the Brazilian reality. This finding highlights that research on carbon emissions in food supply chains has potential to be explored in Brazil, given our conditions of food circulation in different types of chains and environmental conditions of sustainable development and transport.

Keywords: food systems; methods; food markets; life cycle assessment (LCA); carbon footprint.

Author Biographies

  • Joelson Oliveira Santos, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS)

    Mestre em Economia (UFRN). Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS). Porto Alegre. Rio Grande do Sul. Brasil. 

  • Marcelo Antonio Conterato, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS)

    Doutor em Desenvolvimento Rural (UFRGS). Professor da Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS). Programa de Pós-Graduação em Desenvolvimento Rural (PGDR). Porto Alegre. Rio Grande do Sul. Brasil. 

  • Marcio Gazolla, Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná (UTFPR)

    Doutor em Desenvolvimento Rural (UFRGS). Professor Titular da Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná (UTFPR). Programa de Pós-Graduação em Desenvolvimento Regional (PPGDR). Pato Branco. Paraná. Brasil. 

Published

2026-09-18

Issue

Section

Artigos

How to Cite

SANTOS, Joelson Oliveira; CONTERATO, Marcelo Antonio; GAZOLLA, Marcio. Carbon footprint in food supply chains: a review of the literature of accounting methods for greenhouse gas emissions. DRd - Desenvolvimento Regional em debate, [S. l.], v. 16, p. 528–548, 2026. DOI: 10.24302/drd.v16.6078. Disponível em: https://www.periodicos.unc.br/index.php/drd/article/view/6078. Acesso em: 18 sep. 2026.

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