Food waste is an invisible problem that puts a very real strain on our food system and planet. To show an example, for every 10 pieces of fruit you eat, 19 would need to be grown. See how waste adds up all along the produce supply chain.
We use Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to translate Apeel’s impact on food waste into environmental impact.
Measuring the whole supply chain
What a Life Cycle
Assessment measures
All along the produce supply chain, resources like water, fuel, electricity, and packaging are used to grow, transport, process, and sell produce. Life cycle assessment translates all these inputs into the total environmental footprint of a piece of produce.
Our LCA studies measure the environmental footprint of produce both with and without Apeel, comparing the two to quantify the environmental impacts avoided. All of Apeel’s LCA results take the environmental impacts associated with making, distributing, and applying our product into account. See our most recent LCA report below for more details.
In order to calculate the positive impact of our technology, a key input into our LCA studies is food waste data: the amount of food waste prevented and the place in the supply chain this occurs. We measure our impact on retail food waste by conducting controlled, in-store pilot tests. In these studies, a set of control stores receive standard, untreated fruit. The food waste rate in those stores is compared to a second set of stores that receive Apeel-protected fruit.
Apeel’s memberships
and associations
Apeel is proud to work with some of the most innovative groups, organizations, and initiatives to grow our impact on the food system.