RU1 – University "G. d'Annunzio" of Chieti-Pescara 

The Chieti-Pescara unit, as the project’s PI, will coordinate the whole project, supervising the implementation of the various phases and activities carried out by the individual units. The Chieti-Pescara team has participated in several multi- and inter-disciplinary research projects, at national and international level, also involving engagement with stakeholders (mainly industry) and has recently led the WP5 on sustainability metrics for circular systems, within CRESTING. The Chieti-Pescara unit will also collaborate with the other units in defining methodological approaches and in carrying out the joint activities planned in the various phases. Due to their internationally recognised expertise on the Social-LCA topic, the Chieti-Pescara unit will particularly contribute to the development of a S-LCA framework to deeply comprehend social practices in the agri-food sector.

In addition, in full continuity with the PRIN 2017 ILCIDAF Project, the Chieti-Pescara unit will focus specifically on the wine supply chain. Indeed, the members of the unit have gained many years of consolidated research experience in the wine making industry, especially in the theoretical development and application of LCT methods and tools, and have built up a network of contacts with the relevant companies. Circular systems and/or circular practices within the wine making industry will be mapped. Then the identified circularity metrics and circularity assessment methods and indicators for the agri-food sector, will be adapted to the selected circular systems, in order to verify a possible correlation between them. This correlation will be further investigated to identify which circularity practices show improved performance in terms of sustainability.

RU2 – University of Messina 

The Messina unit will cooperate with the other research units in Phases 1 (state of the art and literature review), 2 (methodological development) and 4 (dissemination and communication), in relation to the internationally recognised expertise and knowledge of the involved team on LCA, sustainability and CE assessment.

In particular, the Messina team has experience in multi and inter-disciplinary research projects, both at national and international level, where LCT tools and methods have been specifically applied to the agri-food system (e.g. it was the PI of the EMAF project PRIN 2008 and it is involved in the ILCIDAF project PRIN 2017), as well in other sectors (e.g. was involved in CRESTING project on sustainability metrics for circular systems and in the PON project THALASSA; it is also unit responsible for the University of Messina for the PO FESR SICILIA project ELETTRORIGENERA), often highlighting the problems connected in linking and integrating sustainability and circularity evaluations.

In addition, in full continuity with the PRIN 2017 ILCIDAF Project, the Messina unit will specifically focus on the olive oil supply chain. Indeed, the members of the unit have gained many years of consolidated research experience in the implementation of LCA and other LCT methods and tools in the olive oil making industry, both from a methodological and operational perspective. In Phase 3 (applicative research), sustainability and circularity assessment within the olive oil making industry will be carried out, the identified circularity assessment methods and indicators will be applied to the selected circular systems and these will be compared to the traditional linear ones in order to verify their life cycle sustainability performances.

RU3 – University of Bari 

The Bari unit will work, with the other research units, on the joint activities concerning Phases 1, 2 and 4 of the proposed project. The unit will make use of its experience and knowledge regarding the application of the “Life Cycle” paradigm to product systems (including agri-food systems – e.g. the Bari unit is the PI of the ILCIDAF project - PRIN 2017).

Furthermore, the unit will also specifically focus on the pasta and bread supply chain. Specifically, the members of the unit have been carrying out, for many decades, research involving the application of life cycle thinking methods to agri-food systems, both from a methodological and operational perspective; such experience will be used to map the sustainability and circularity assessment within the pasta and bread industries. Once the circularity assessment methods and indicators will have been identified, these will be adapted to selected circular systems, and compared to traditional linear ones in order to verify their sustainability performance and thus prove whether circularity practices in the pasta and bread supply chains show improved performance in terms of sustainability. In particular, the Bari unit will focus on the LCA-based methodologies for quantitative and integrated assessment, such as Environmental Life Cycle Costing (LCC) applied to bread/ pasta supply chain. The integration of LCA, LCC as well as the inclusion in the analysis of further external social costs (Societal life cycle costing), will allow the definition of economic, environmental and social indicators. This will represent an important result in food chains where these aspects are often separately determined and not related to each other.