Study reveals low carbon footprint of NZ farmed shellfish

Study reveals low carbon footprint of NZ farmed shellfish. A just-released study by sustainability experts thinkstep-anz has found New Zealand-farmed shellfish have among the lowest carbon footprints of all animal proteins, similar to the footprint of the plant-based protein tofu. The study, co-funded by the Ministry for Primary Industries and Aquaculture New Zealand, is an in-depth analysis of the life cycle of farmed Greenshell mussels (Perna canaliculus) and farmed Pacific oysters (Crassostrea gigas) in New Zealand. Jeff Vickers, co-author and the Technical Director at thinkstep-anz says: “The study uses a method called Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to consider the full life cycle of farmed shellfish from ocean to plate and beyond. It covers everything from collecting spat (the juvenile shellfish), through the grow-out phase on the farm, harvesting, processing, packaging, shipping, and food preparation, to disposing of used shells and packaging. “We took the inputs from all of ...