Type of indicator
Quantitative
Relative dimension and aggregated criteria
Environmental sustainability: Herd management practices: Circular feed supply
Description
This measure refers to the share of by-products in the diets of dairy animals. It gives an indication of the use of by-products in diets, which is associated with a better use of primary resources. This indicator was identified as a key aspect of environmental sustainability based on technical information from Pellerin et al. (2013). Specifically, the Pellerin et al. (2013) report highlights options to reduce protein intake in animal feed and limit N content in effluents and associated nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. Please refer to action #8 in Pellerin et al. (2013).
The by-product content of concentrates bought off farm is not included in this indicator.
Indicator calculation
(∑𝑖(𝐵𝑦𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑖) / 𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑓𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑝𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛) ∗ 100
Where:
Byproduct content i = By-product content in the diet i, expressed in kg of DM
Total = Total of feed consumed (concentrates + forages + byproducts) in all diet, expressed in kg of DM
Unit
Percentage
Indicator interpretation
Higher values are associated with better environmental management practices and are thus expected to lead to enhanced environmental sustainability.
Scale definition
| Reference values
(%) |
Scale | Dexi
interpretation |
References | |
| 95 | >60 | High | + | Adapted from (Condren et al., 2019; Whelan et al., 2017). Scale built in a participative approach by scientists and
experts |
| 75 | [40; 60] | Medium to high | ||
| 55 | [20; 40[ | Medium to low | ||
| 35 | <20 | Low | – |
References
Expert opinion based on technical information Based on Pellerin et al. (2013) technical report on reducing protein intake in animal feed to limit nitrogen content in effluents and associated N2O emissions.
Pellerin, S., Bamière, L., Angers, D., Béline, F., Benoît, M., Butault, J.P., Chen, C., Colnenne- David, C., De Cara, S., Delame, N., Doreau, M., Dupraz, P., Faverdi, P., Garccia-Launa, F., Hassouna, M., Hénault, C., Jeuffroy, M.H., Klumpp, K., Metay, A., Moran, D., Recous, S., Samson, E., Savini, I., Pardon, L., 2013. Quelle contribution de l’agriculture française à la réduction des émissions de gaz à effet de serre ? Potentiel d’atténuation et coût de dix actions techniques. INRA, France, p. 92p.