The environmental impact of permanent meadows-based farms: A comparison among different dairy farm management systems of an Italian cheese

The environmental impact of dairy production is heavily influenced by milk farm efficiency, farm characteristics, and farming activities, such as feed management. The existing research on the environmental impacts of the dif- ferently managed dairy farm systems is often in contrast and difficult to be compared. Thus, the present study aimed to assess the environmental impacts of milk used for the same cheese by comparing four dairy farm sys- tems different for feed management choices, geographical area, herd size and milk productivity. A Life Cycle As- sessment was performed following the Product Environmental Footprint methodology using primary data collected in 70 farms and one average cheese factory. The results showed that the raw milk production phase was the most significant contributor to the environmental impacts of cheese production. The self-produced feed and purchased feed resulted as the main hotspot processes, covering 64–77 % of the total impact. In fact, among the four different farm systems, the Permanent Meadows Farms showed the best environmental perfor- mance, with the lowest values registered for 14 of 19 impact indicators. Similar impacts were observed for the North Italy Representative Farms, while Small Plain Farms disclosed the highest outcomes, resulting most impacting than the Mountain Farms. Results demonstrate that different feed management choices can affect the final cheese impact and could be considered by private and public policies focused on green transformation objectives.