Research Status and Prospects for Life Cycle Assessment in Fruit and Vegetable Product Manufacturing

With the continuous growth of the global population, the establishment of a food system that can ensure adequate nutrition, while maintaining environmental sustainability, has emerged as a pressing challenge for society. Fruit and vegetable products, which are highly valued for their rich nutritional content, remain controversial in terms of their environmental friendliness. There is an urgent need to utilize scientific environmental management tools to systematically assess life cycle environmental impacts, thereby driving the green transformation of the fruit and vegetable industry. Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a comprehensive and systematic environmental evaluation methodology that quantifies environmental issues across all stages of a product's life cycle, ranging from raw material extraction to waste disposal. It plays pivotal roles in promoting sustainable development across multiple industries. This study focuses on the application of LCA to fruit- and vegetable-based food manufacturing. First, a detailed breakdown of the key implementation aspects of the four core stages of LCA is provided from a technical framework perspective. Second, from the viewpoint of the fruit- and vegetable-based food supply chain, this study explores how LCA can optimize raw material production and processing and the circulation and consumption environment. Finally, in response to existing challenges, such as difficulties in obtaining inventory data, poor standardization of evaluation methods, and the scarcity of industry-specific models, this paper proposes corresponding solutions. The ultimate goal is to offer quantifiable tools for scientifically assessing the environmental benefits of fruit and vegetable products, thereby contributing to the sustainable development of food systems.