Implementing environmental labelling of food products in France

• Published in: The international journal of life cycle assessment Vol. 27; no. 7; pp. 926 - 931
• Main Authors: Hélias, Arnaud, van der Werf, Hayo M. G., Soler, Louis-Georges, Aggeri, Franck, Dourmad, Jean-Yves, Julia, Chantal, Nabec, Lydiane, Pellerin, Sylvain, Ruffieux, Bernard, Trystram, Gilles
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01-07-2022; Springer Nature B.V; Springer Verlag
• Subjects: Climate change; Commentary and Discussion Article; Consumers; Consumption; Councils; Earth and Environmental Science; Environment; Environment and Society; Environmental assessment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Economics; Environmental Engineering/Biotechnology; Environmental impact; Environmental labelling; Environmental Sciences; Food; Food products; Labeling; Plant-based foods; Questions; Data; Public policy; Operationalization; Environmental labelling; Food
• ISSN: 0948-3349; 1614-7502
• DOI: 10.1007/s11367-022-02071-8

Consumers increasingly demand information about the environmental impacts of their food. The French government is in the process of introducing environmental labelling for all food products. A scientific council was set up, and its main conclusions are presented in this article, through six questions: What environmental issues should be considered? What objective should be targeted? What data are needed, and for whom? What methods for assessing environmental impacts? Which environmental scores should be chosen? What label format should be proposed? By answering these questions and considering the context, the available data, the proposed methods and adjustments, and the knowledge of consumer perception of formats, the scientific council considers that a labelling scheme is feasible and relevant.