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Protein quality as a complementary functional unit in life cycle assessment (LCA).
G A McAuliffe1, T Takahashi1,2, T Beal3,4
1Net Zero and Resilient Farming, Rothamsted Research, North Wyke, Okehampton, EX20 2SB Devon UK.
The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment
|January 23, 2023
Summary
Nutritional life cycle assessments (nLCAs) should consider protein quality, not just quantity, for accurate dietary recommendations. Incorporating the Digestible Indispensable Amino Acid Score (DIAAS) improves environmental impact assessments of foods.
Area of Science:
- Nutritional Life Cycle Assessment (nLCA)
- Dietary environmental impact analysis
- Protein quality and bioavailability
Background:
- Life cycle assessment (LCA) studies often recommend restricting animal-sourced foods due to environmental impacts.
- These studies may oversimplify nutritional considerations, using generic protein requirements instead of specific nutrient bioavailability.
- Animal-sourced foods are crucial for nutrient adequacy in vulnerable global populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the necessity of considering protein quality in nutritional LCA (nLCA) when using protein as a nutritional functional unit (nFU).
- To explore the role of the Digestible Indispensable Amino Acid Score (DIAAS) in nLCA for correcting amino acid quality and digestibility.
- To demonstrate the strengths and weaknesses of protein-quality adjustment through a case study.
Main Methods:
- An exploratory virtual experiment was conducted to assess DIAAS in nLCA.
- The study focused on single food items, analyzing 4 animal-based and 4 plant-based products.
- A sensitivity analysis using beef explored how different cuts impact nLCA interpretation.
Main Results:
- Protein-quality correction, particularly using DIAAS, is essential for accurate nLCA when protein is the nFU.
- DIAAS quantifies the contribution of digestible indispensable amino acids relative to daily requirements for protein synthesis.
- Considering protein complementarity at the meal-level, rather than just the product level, is crucial for assessing consumer metabolic responses.
Conclusions:
- nLCA studies should incorporate protein quality, ideally quantitatively using metrics like DIAAS, as data availability increases.
- Future research should prioritize meal-level amino acid balance analysis over product-level analysis.
- Evaluating 'protein-rich foods' necessitates including a broader range of nutrients beyond just amino acids for comprehensive dietary assessment.
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