Life Cycle Assessment Databases and Software
The SALCAfuture software, the SALCA code, and the SALCA database are three key tools for implementing SALCA in practice.
To calculate agricultural life-cycle assessments (LCAs), we need a suitable methodology (SALCA), numerous production and environmental data, and precise models for calculating emissions and estimating environmental impacts.
Agroscope is working with a software program developed in-house (SALCAfuture) to manage data flow efficiently and run the complex calculation models (implemented in Python) correctly. The results of these calculations are stored in a separate database in the form of life cycle inventories (LCIs). In this context, current developments in the field of digitalisation are becoming increasingly important.