Is Danish Venison Production Environmentally Sustainable?

Abstract

The objective of this study is to quantify the climate- and environmental impact of venison production from six wild life species in Denmark: Red deer, roe deer, fallow deer, wild boar, mallard and pheasant, and compare it with the environmental impact of commercially produced beef, pork and chicken in Denmark. The method for quantifying the impact of venison applied original LCI data obtained for the complete life cycle of Danish venison production of all six species, supplemented with data from Ecoinvent® and LCAFOOD on materials and processes involved in production of venison and industrial meat. Fodder, foraging on farmers’ fields, infrastructure, hunter/hunting and abattoir processes were analyzed separately using Simapro software applying the Stepwise® method. The results indicate that Danish venison production ranges from being slightly less, over being equally, to most often being far more environmentally harmful than the production of comparable industrial meat types. The main environmental impact originated from feed and foraging on farmer’s fields and mileage driven by the hunters was surprisingly high. Danish industrial meat from domestic animals is typically more environmentally friendly than Danish venison.