Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions of the Indian Food System: A Cradle‐to‐Consumption Assessment

ABSTRACT

The global food system accounts for roughly 25%–30% of total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Without emission estimates, it is difficult to identify major sources of emissions as well as monitor the progress towards climate goals such as the Paris Agreement, net‐zero emissions and Carbon Credit. The rapidly evolving food system of India is contributing significantly to national GHG emissions; nevertheless, a comprehensive understanding of emissions across the food life cycle is still limited. Present study was undertaken to analyse state‐wise GHG emissions from on‐farm and off‐farm activities as well as various stages of agri‐food life cycle. For this, data pertaining to consumption of 12 major food groups (combination of 405 food items) across 30 states of India was extracted from NSSO report 2022–23, and different methodologies were used for getting GHG emissions at each stage of agri‐food life cycle. Findings indicated that production of livestock products, though less consumed than cereals, has disproportionately higher GHG intensities (89.81%) than crops (10.19%) due to enteric fermentation and feed production. Life cycle assessment (LCA) indicated that among all food crops, production of rice contributed to 2.26% followed by oilseeds (2.20%) and least by wheat (0.55%) towards GHG emission. Emission from other stages like transport of rice was highest (24%) followed by fruits (19%) and meat (10%), respectively. Regional disparities in dietary patterns and agricultural practices further influenced the emission profiles. Considering the production scenario, the top four GHG emitters (from production scenario) were Haryana (2079.44) > Telangana (1934.49) > Andhra Pradesh (1873.37) > Punjab (1844.72 kg CO
2
e/capita/year). In case of consumption the trend was Nagaland (1387.38 kg CO2e/capita/year) > Sikkim (1304.09 kg CO2/capita/year) > Ladakh (1085.11 kg CO2e/capita/year) > Arunachal Pradesh (1055.36 kg CO
2
e/capita/year) due to high per capita consumption of meat and rice. GHG emissions resulting from inter‐state transport to the union territories ranged between 0.886 and 1.734 kg CO
2
e/kg of product, highlighting their substantial dependence on external food sources. This study focused on the potential of dietary shifts, improved agricultural practices and reduced food waste as key mitigation strategies. These insights will provide critical direction for low‐carbon food system transitions in developing economies.