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Cattle, prime beef, live weight, Central Western Plains {AU-NSW}| inland weaners | AusLCI, U

Unit process v00.00.000

This dataset represents the production of cattle for beef. The reference flow is 100 Documentation for this dataset can be found in the 'LCAgMetrics Methodology for developing Life Cycle Inventory' report, available at https://agrifutures.com.au/. (Hume, I., Renouf, M.A., Eady, S.J., Grant, T., 2025). It was developed as part of the LCAgMetrics project, a partnership between Agrifutures Australia and Lifecycles, funded by the Australian Government's Sustainability Reporting Uplift Grant as part of the National Agriculture Traceability Grants Program. Production Volume: 2186.345 kg Activities included: The inventory begins with the breeding, growing and maintenance of cattle in the State, Region, and Production System detailed. Activities included are: Pasture, feed inputs, supplements and energy use on farm. Direct field emissions are included. The system boundary ends at the farm gate with the production of cattle for sale in three classes - culled cattle (Cast For Age cows and bulls), prime cattle (heifers, feeder steers and finished steers) and weaner cattle (female and male). Energy values: 13.0 MJ/kg. Nutritional values: Protein: 14.1%. Carbohydrate: 0.8%. Fat: 14.6%. Geography: Central Western Plains, New South Wales, Australia. Technology level: Represents current practices as per gross margins reports (NSW DPI 2023 Rural Solutions SA 2022). Time period: 2017-2021. Version: 1.2 Record: Data entry by: Sandra Eady Tel: ; email: office@lifecycles.com.au; company:Lifecycles; Country: AU Generator: Generator/publicator: Sandra Eady Tel: ; email: office@lifecycles.com.au; company:Lifecycles; Country: AU

Sector
Material
Contributor
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Last updated
26 Aug 2024
Reference ID
2855e10a-e214-3ee1-84d4-2ead9e57cac6

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Documentation

Quantitative reference
Cattle, prime beef, live weight, Central Western Plains {AU-NSW}| inland weaners | AusLCI, U
Sampling procedure
Herd structure and product turn-off from Breedcow Beef CRC templates (Holmes et al. 2011), Gross Margin publications (New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
Creation date
26 Aug 2024
Is copyright protected
No
Is infrastructure process
No
Tags
material
Sources
National Inventory Report (NIR) 2023/2025/DCCEEW
Ash alkalinity/1991/Slattery et al.
Building a foundation for soil condition assessment/2009/Baldock et al.
Environmental performance of large ruminant supply chains/2016/FAO
A Greenhouse Accounting Framework for Beef and Sheep/2020/Ekonomou A.
Agricultural Commodities, Australia, 2018-2022/2023/ABS
Assessing beef carcass tissue weights\2010\Navajas et al.
Beef Cattle Gross Margin Budget/2023/NSW DPI /2023
Efficiency of absorbed protein/2018/Mariz, L.D.S. et al
Farm Gross Margin 2015/2015/Rural Solutions SA PIRSA
Land use of Australia 2010-11 to 2020-21/2024/ABARES
Protein content of liveweight/2022/Honig, A.C. et al
Representative Herds Templates for Northern Australia V1.00/2011/Holmes et al.
The heat of combustion values of the protein and fat in pigs\1972\Sharma et al.

Product outputs

Flow AmountUnitComment
Cattle, manufacturing beef, live weight, Central Western Plains , biogenic C not balanced {AU-NSW}| inland weaners | AusLCI, U 8421.011 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Quantity of Culled cattle sold (kg live weight) e.g. mature bulls and cows. Carbon content, fossil: 0.0 kg C/kg dry mass. Carbon content, non-fossil: 0.51 kg C/kg dry mass. Dry mass: 0.32 kg/kg wet mass. Wet mass: 1 kg/kg wet mass.
Cattle, prime beef, live weight, Central Western Plains {AU-NSW}| inland weaners | AusLCI, U 2186.345 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Quantity of Prime Cattle sold as Steers or Heifers (kg live weight). Carbon content, fossil: 0.0 kg C/kg dry mass. Carbon content, non-fossil: 0.51 kg C/kg dry mass. Dry mass: 0.32 kg/kg wet mass. Wet mass: 1 kg/kg wet mass.
Weaned cattle, live weight, Central Western Plains , biogenic C not balanced {AU-NSW}| inland weaners | AusLCI, U 15769.42 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Quantity of Weaner Cattle sold (kg live weight). Carbon content, fossil: 0.0 kg C/kg dry mass. Carbon content, non-fossil: 0.51 kg C/kg dry mass. Dry mass: 0.32 kg/kg wet mass. Wet mass: 1 kg/kg wet mass.

Technical inputs

Flow AmountUnitComment
Carbon correction factor {AU}| | AusLCI, U 47.12861721066912 kg (2,3,1,1,1,na) - Biogenic carbon correction for prime cattle. Note other products are not balanced for biogenic carbon in this process, but are balanced in a subsequent linked process. All other flows other than biogenic carbon are allocated correction from this inventory.
Cattle, internal parasite control {AU}| | AusLCI, U 373.146 Item(s) (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Internal parasite treatments for the herd.
Cattle, prime beef, live weight, Central Western Plains {AU-NSW}| inland weaners | AusLCI, U 693.0 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total liveweight of replacement bulls purchased each year (kg)
Cereal hay {AU}| market for cereal hay | AusLCI, U 3019.274 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Total hay for herd from matching geographical region/state.
Chemical, organic {GLO}| market for chemical, organic | Cut-off, U 373.146 g (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Vaccine administered for clostridial and reproductive diseases (ml).
Coconut, dehusked {GLO}| market for coconut, dehusked | Cut-off, U 0.0 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Coconut used as proxy for copra.
Cottonseed meal, at oil mill {AU}| | AusLCI, U 0.0 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Total protein pellets 20% CP for herd.
Cottonseed meal, at oil mill {AU}| | AusLCI, U 0.0 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Total cottonseed meal for herd from matching geographical region/state.
Dry season mix, 30% urea, 5.5% P, at production {AU}| | AusLCI, U 1739.545 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Total dry season mineral supplement for herd.
Electricity, low voltage {AU-NT}| market for electricity, low voltage | AusLCI, U 191.889204 kWh (1,1,1,1,1,na) Electricity calculated from economic data reported in farm survey data from ABARES for 2018-2022 (https://www.agriculture.gov.au/abares/data/farm-data-portal).
Fertilizing, broadacre crop, pre & post-emergence, conventional {AU}| | AusLCI, U 2839.523 ha (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.5 Uncertainty. Application of fertiliser to pasture.
Forage sorghum, irrigated, Darling Downs QLD {AU}| | AusLCI, U 0.0 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Total hay for herd from matching geographical region/state.
Molasses, C-grade, at mill gate, {AU-QLD}| sugarcane milling | AusLCI, U 0.0 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Total hay for herd from matching geographical region/state.
Oat grain {AU}| market for oat grain | AusLCI, U 0.0 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Total area oats grazed by herd from matching geographical region/state.
Polyurethane, flexible foam {GLO}| market for | Cut-off, U 2156.625 g (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total weight of ID tags for flock.
Single superphosphate {AU}| market for single superphosphate | AusLCI, U 0.0 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Single superphosphate for pasture improvement.
Tractor engine operation, on farm, per litre of diesel consumed {AU}| | AusLCI, U 64.798968 l (1,1,1,1,1,na) 1.05 Uncertainty. Fuel calculated from economic data reported in farm survey data from ABARES for 2018-2022 (https://www.agriculture.gov.au/abares/data/farm-data-portal).
Transport, truck, 28t, fleet average {AU}| | AusLCI, U 1014.0747399359999 t*km (3,1,1,1,1,na) 2.1 Uncertainty. Total transport for inputs to the system in tkm. All assumed to be transported by articulated trucks.
Transport, truck, 60t load {AU}| | AusLCI, U 76.22999999999999 t*km (2,1,1,1,1,na) 2 Uncertainty. Livestock transport for purchased bulls.
Wet season mix, 0% N 21% P, at production {AU}| | AusLCI, U 0.0 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Total wet season mineral supplement without N for herd.

Elementary flow inputs

Flow Sub-compartment AmountUnitComment
Carbon dioxide unspecified 40964.779845198005 kg Nett additinal biogenic carbon absorbed by pasture and transferred to liveweight of the aminal after accounting for external biogenic carbon inputs such as feed.
Occupation, grassland, natural, for livestock grazing land 2839.523 ha*a (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.5. Intersection of livestock region (based on SA2 units) and 2021 Land Use Map (Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences 2024) for natural and sown pastures combined with Agricultural Commodities, Australia (2018-2022) for livestock numbers.
Transformation, from grassland, natural, for livestock grazing land 2839.523 ha No net land transformation assumed. Any net land transformations due to direct land use change (dLUC) to be added when more clarity regarding LUC estimation method, and consistent with carbon fluxes from dLUC
Transformation, to grassland, natural, for livestock grazing land 2839.523 ha No net land transformation assumed. Any net land transformations due to direct land use change (dLUC) to be added when more clarity regarding LUC estimation method, and consistent with carbon fluxes from dLUC
Water, unspecified natural origin, Barwon-Darling, NSW, AU — 395.522837716 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Barwon-Darling, NSW, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Barwon-Darling, NSW, AU — 707138.5731109999 l (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total water use is calculated from cattle drinking water requirements taking account water content of feed and mean ambient temperature occuring in Barwon-Darling, NSW, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Lachlan, NSW, AU — 139851.91835899997 l (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total water use is calculated from cattle drinking water requirements taking account water content of feed and mean ambient temperature occuring in Lachlan, NSW, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Lachlan, NSW, AU — 78.223179604 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Lachlan, NSW, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Lake Eyre, NSW, QLD, NT and SA, AU — 305.1805739480001 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Lake Eyre, NSW, QLD, NT and SA, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Lake Eyre, NSW, QLD, NT and SA, AU — 545619.456133 l (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total water use is calculated from cattle drinking water requirements taking account water content of feed and mean ambient temperature occuring in Lake Eyre, NSW, QLD, NT and SA, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Macquarie-Castlereagh, NSW, AU — 113.478697172 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Macquarie-Castlereagh, NSW, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Macquarie-Castlereagh, NSW, AU — 202883.76888699998 l (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total water use is calculated from cattle drinking water requirements taking account water content of feed and mean ambient temperature occuring in Macquarie-Castlereagh, NSW, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Murray, NSW, VIC and SA, AU — 350614.668562 l (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total water use is calculated from cattle drinking water requirements taking account water content of feed and mean ambient temperature occuring in Murray, NSW, VIC and SA, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Murray, NSW, VIC and SA, AU — 196.108816472 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Murray, NSW, VIC and SA, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Namoi, NSW, AU — 1969.7453289999999 l (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total water use is calculated from cattle drinking water requirements taking account water content of feed and mean ambient temperature occuring in Namoi, NSW, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Namoi, NSW, AU — 1.101734924 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Namoi, NSW, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Paroo, NSW and QLD, AU — 23636.943948 l (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total water use is calculated from cattle drinking water requirements taking account water content of feed and mean ambient temperature occuring in Paroo, NSW and QLD, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Paroo, NSW and QLD, AU — 13.220819088 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Paroo, NSW and QLD, AU catchment.

Elementary flow outputs

Flow CompartmentSub-compartment AmountUnitComment
Ammonia Emission to airunspecified 787.1767272727272 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.4. NH3 emission
Area grazed Non material emissions— 2839.523 ha —
Carbon dioxide, from soil or biomass stock Emission to airlow population density 0.0 kg This flow intentionally set to zero. Carbon fluxes from direct land use change (dLUC) to be added when more clarity regarding LUC estimation method
Dinitrogen monoxide Emission to airlow population density 0.0 kg (1,3,2,1,1,na) - 1.4 Uncertainty.Nitrous oxide production from mineralisation due to loss of soil carbon, NIR 2022 Source: NIR 2023 (DCCEEW, 2025).
Dinitrogen monoxide Emission to airunspecified 4.096 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.4. N2O atmospheric deposition
Dinitrogen monoxide Emission to airunspecified 0.027 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.4. N2O leaching and runoff
Dinitrogen monoxide Emission to airunspecified 39.012 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.4. N2O Dung and Urine
Enteric methane Non material emissions— 9669.101 kg —
Evaporative water loss Non material emissions— 1101734.924 m3 —
Livestock N2O all sources Non material emissions— 39039004.096 kg —
Methane, non-fossil Emission to airunspecified 9669.101 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.21. Enteric Methane
Methane, non-fossil Emission to airunspecified 144.815673 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.21. Farm dam Methane
Methane, non-fossil Emission to airunspecified 589.439 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.21. Manure Methane
Nitrogen Emission to waterground water 1.546796 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.5. N leached from Dung and Urine
Water intake of livestock Non material emissions— 1969.7453289999999 m3 —
hydrogen ions Emissions to soil— 6.87548658 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Net change in H ions due to imports (feriliser, feeds) to and exports (cattle liveweight) from the farm

Parameters

NameValueFormulaDescription
KM_Cottonseed 400.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for cottonseed (km)
PUR_Bulls_WT 840.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Liveweight (kg) of replacement bulls purchased each year. Breedcow Beef CRC templates (Holmes et al. 2011) and Gross Margin publications ( New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
PR_fert 1.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) - Proportion of grazed area fertilsed with single superphosphate
DLUC_switch — — By default the switch is set to 0 to not include direct land use change. To include the value for direct land use change set the switch to 1. Direct land use change calculation approach is still uncertain
Cows 100.308 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Number of cows and heifers mated using herd structure from from Breedcow Beef CRC templates (Holmes et al. 2011) and farm gross margins (New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
F_Namoi_NSW 0.001 — Fraction of Namoi, NSW, AU catchment in livestock region.
Sorghum_graz — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total area of forage sorghum grazed (ha)
CC_Protein_Pellets 0.405 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.5 as DM
ProductTotal 26376.775999999998 KG_PrimeCattle+KG_CulledBreeders+kg_Weaners (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total production of cattle from this process (kg live weight)
EFN_Leach 0.011 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Emissions factor for proportion of N leached released as N2O.
DAM_CH4_HA 0.051 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Methane emissions form farm dams (kg CH4 ha/yr), calcuted using the temperature based approach descibed by NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025). Dam density described by NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025).
F_Barwon_Darling_NSW 0.359 — Fraction of Barwon-Darling, NSW, AU catchment in livestock region.
P_CulledBreeders 2.76 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) Average price for National Processor Cow Indicator ($/kg live weight sold) from MLA https://www.mla.com/prices-markets/statistics/ for 5 year period 2019 - 2024.
BioC_all__corr_Weaners -353.030900221449 BioC_Actual_Weaners-BioC_CurrentAll_Weaners This is the correction to the biogenic carbon required to balance the biogenic carbon for weaners in kg C.
KG_PrimeCattle 2186.345 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Quantity of Prime cattle sold (kg live weight) e.g. steers/bullocks, heifers (2 and 3 year old), calculated using herd structure from Breedcow Beef CRC templates (Holmes et al. 2011), Gross Margin publications ( New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
Elec_use 191.889204 Elec*Cows (1,1,1,1,1,na) 1.05 Uncertainty. Whole farm electricity use (kWh)
Wet_mix — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total wet season lick (kg)
AF_Cottonseed — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for cottonseed (kMol/kg) based on (Baldock et al. 2009).
EFN_mineral 0.004 — (1,3,2,1,1,na) - [kgN2O-N/kgN] emission factor for N emissions from mineralisations - NIR 2023 (DCCEEW, 2025).
LEACH_N2O 0.027 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg N2O from leached N. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025) Frac_WET estimated independently for each livestock region.
KM_Protein_pellets 600.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for protein_pellets (km)
AF_Molasses — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for molasses (kMol/kg) based on (Baldock et al. 2009).
NAAR_Cattle 8.96810384 producttotal*af_cattle/1000 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Change in soil acidity (H ion eq/t) from export of cattle product
TotN_LeachGW 1.564 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) total N leached to ground water (kg). Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
KG_Weaners 15769.42 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Quantity of Weaners sold (kg live weight) - both sexes < 1 year old, calculated using herd structure from Breedcow Beef CRC templates (Holmes et al. 2011), Gross Margin publications ( New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
F_Lake_Eyre_NSW_QLD_NT_and_SA 0.277 — Fraction of Lake Eyre, NSW, QLD, NT and SA, AU catchment in livestock region.
All_Weaners 66.84852716499249 iff(Allocation=1;All_Weaners_Eco;iff(Allocation=2; All_Weaners_EN; iff(Allocation =3; All_Weaners_Mass; All_Pro_Weaners))) (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to weaners. (%)
BioC_as_CH4_emissions 7802.5167547500005 (Ent_CH4+Man_CH4+Dam_Ch4)*12/16 kg biogenic carbon emitted as methane from various sources.
AF_Copra — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for copra (kMol/kg) based on web search unspecifed sources.
All_Weaners_En 59.78524441349467 En_Weaners/Tot_En*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to Weaners based on energy content (%)
DM_Hay 0.88 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of hay
NAAR_Inputs -2.09261726 (Dry_mix*AF_Dry_mix+Wet_mix*AF_Wet_mix+Hay*AF_Hay+Copra*AF_Copra+Molasses*AF_Molasses+Cottonseed*AF_Cottonseed+Protein_Pellets*AF_Protein_Pellets)/1000 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Net change in soil acidity (H ion eq) from imported products (feeds, fertilizer)
BioC_Products 4552.077625304 Producttotal*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle kg biogenic carbon in outputs of all products in the inventory before applying allocation
F_Paroo_NSW_and_QLD 0.012 — Fraction of Paroo, NSW and QLD, AU catchment in livestock region.
DU_N2O 39.012 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg N2O from dung and urine. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
DM_Wet_mix 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of wet season mix
P_Weaners 4.135 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) Average price for Restocker Yearlings (Heifers and Steers) ($/kg live weight sold) from MLA https://www.mla.com/prices-markets/statistics/ for 5 year period 2019 - 2024.
BioC_Actual_Weaners 2721.4707341800004 kg_Weaners*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle The actual amount of biogenic carbon which should be allocated weaners in kg C.
All_Weaners_Mass 59.78524441349467 kg_Weaners/ProductTotal*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Mass allocation fraction for Weaner cattle (%)
KM_fert 200.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for fertiliser to farm (km)
ID_tagbad 25.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Was listed as Total drinking water intake (L/year)
Copra — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total copra meal fed (kg)
DM_Copra 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of copra
Pro_Weaners 1261.5536000000002 KG_Weaners*PC_Lwt*EFF_P_Lwt (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total protein requirement to produce Weaners (kg)
CC_Cottonseed 0.45 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.4 as DM, NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
DAM_CH4 144.815673 DAM_CH4_ha*HA_GRAZING (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total methane emissions form darm dams (kg) (excluding manure fraction which is counted elsewhere)
DLUC_value — — [tCO2eq/ha/year] Annual direct CO2 emissions from land use change. This flow intentionally set to zero. Carbon fluxes from direct land use change (dLUC) to be added when more clarity regarding LUC estimation method
Fuel 0.646 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) Fuel (L diesel/Cow mated) calculated from economic data reported in farm survey data from ABARES for 2018-2022 (https://www.agriculture.gov.au/abares/data/farm-data-portal).
PC_Lwt 0.2 — (1,1,2,1,2,na) - Protein content of liveweight. Honig, A.C. et al. 2022 Meat Science 184 doi: 10.1016/j.meatsci.2021.108685
BiogenicCO2 — Soil_C_loss*3.667*HA_GRAZING*0 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.5 Uncertainty. Total SOC change in units of CO2-eq
Pro_PrimeCattle 174.9076 KG_PrimeCattle*PC_Lwt*EFF_P_Lwt (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total protein requirement to produce PrimeCattle (kg)
Soil_C_loss — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Change in Soil Orgnic Carbon t C/ha/year in 0-30cm layer
CC_livecattle 0.541 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content 0.541 of animal as DM. (Average carbon content of 0.175 C/kg liveweight assuming dressing of 63%, carcase composition of 70% meat, 20% fat and 10% bone; dry matter content of 15% by-product (blood, rumen, heads and hooves), 25% meat, 85% fat and 74% bone; and carbon content of 53% by-product, 53% meat, 76% fat and 7.5% bone.)
BioC_all_Corr_Primecattle 47.12861721066912 BioC_CurrentAll_PrimeCattle-BioC_Actual_Primecattle This is the correction to the biogenic carbon required to balance the biogenic carbon for prime cattle in kg C.
All_Pro_PrimeCattle 8.288901570078162 Pro_PrimeCattle/Pro_Total*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to Prime Cattle based on protein requirement (%)
KM_fuel 300.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for fuel to farm (km)
KM_Hay 100.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for hay (km)
KG_CulledBreeders 8421.011 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Quantity of Culled cattle sold (kg live weight) e.g. mature bulls, cows and spay cows >3 years old, calculated using herd structure from Breedcow Beef CRC templates (Holmes et al. 2011), Gross Margin publications ( New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
BioC_Pasture_nett 11172.212685054 BioC_Products+BioC_as_CH4_emissions-BioC_inputs kg biogenic carbon added to cattle by pasture after accounting incoming feed, respiration, losses as methane and other losses from system.
Pro_CulledBreeders 673.6808800000001 KG_CulledBreeders*PC_Lwt*EFF_P_Lwt (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total protein requirement to produce Culled Breeders (kg)
Tot_P_fert — P_fert*HA_Grazing*PR_fert (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total fertiliser applied as single superphosphate (kg)
Pro_Total 2110.1420800000005 Pro_CulledBreeders+Pro_PrimeCattle+Pro_Weaners (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total protein requirment for all coproducts leaving the farm (kg)
All_PrimeCattle_Mass 8.288901570078162 kg_PrimeCattle/ProductTotal*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Mass allocation fraction for Prime cattle (%)
EN_lwt 3.1 — (1,1,2,1,2,na) - Calorific value (kcal/g) of live cattle at 54% dressing %. Sharma et al. 1972 and Navaja et al. 2010.
F_Macquarie_Castlereagh_NSW 0.103 — Fraction of Macquarie-Castlereagh, NSW, AU catchment in livestock region.
Protein_Pellets — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total protein pellets 20% CP fed (kg)
CC_Molasses 0.347 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.42 as DM
oat_yield 100.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) Yield of grazing oats
P_fert — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Fertiliser applied as single superphosphate 8.8% P (kg/ha/year). Breedcow Beef CRC templates (Holmes et al. 2011), Gross Margin publications ( New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
Allocation 1.0 — Allocation switch, 1 = Economic alocation (default for AusLCI), 2 = Energy allocation, 3 = Mass allocation, 4 = Protein Allocation.
Fuel_use 64.798968 Fuel*Cows (1,1,1,1,1,na) 1.05 Uncertainty. Whole farm fuel use (L)
DM_Cottonseed 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of cottonseed
ID_tag 25.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Weight of plastic ID tag individual (g)
All_CulledBreeders_Mass 31.92585401642718 kg_CulledBreeders/ProductTotal*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Mass allocation fraction for Culled cattle (%)
AF_Protein_Pellets — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for protein pellets (kMol/kg) based on (Baldock et al. 2009).
N_LeachGW 1.546796 TotN_LeachGW-(TotN_LeachGW*EFN_Leach) (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.4 Uncertainty. N leached to ground water adjusted for N loss from N2O (kg).
All_CulledBreeders_Eco 23.827250229350092 (KG_CulledBreeders*P_CulledBreeders)/(P_PrimeCattle*KG_PrimeCattle+P_CulledBreeders*KG_CulledBreeders+KG_Weaners*P_weaners)*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Economic allocation fraction for Culled cattle (%) - default for AusLCI
BioC_CurrentAll_PrimeCattle 424.44585096566914 BioC_Products*All_PrimeCattle/100 Due to the allocation approach this is how much biogenic CO2 is being directed to the prime cattle product. in kg C. This is likely not the correct amount.
Water 1969745.329 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total drinking water intake (L/year)
All_CulledBreeders 23.827250229350092 iff(Allocation=1;All_CulledBreeders_Eco;iff(Allocation=2; All_Culledbreeders_EN; iff(Allocation =3; All_Culledbreeders_Mass; All_Pro_Culledbreeders))) (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to culled breeders. (%)
Molasses — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total molasses fed (kg)
All_Weaners_Eco 66.84852716499249 (KG_Weaners*P_Weaners)/(P_PrimeCattle*KG_PrimeCattle+P_CulledBreeders*KG_CulledBreeders+KG_Weaners*P_weaners)*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Economic allocation fraction for Weaned cattle - default for AusLCI (%)
Hay 3019.274 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total hay fed (kg)
DeterminingProd 15769.42 KG_Weaners (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Determining product will change with production system: = KG_Weaners when KG_Weaners > KG_PrimeCattle, otherwise KG_PrimeCattle.
Oats_graz — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total area of forage oats grazed (ha)
DM_Molasses 0.825 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of molasses
soil_NC_frac 0.09090909090909091 1/(10+1) Fraction of N to C in soil, based on a CN ratio of 1:10 - NIR 2023 (DCCEEW, 2025).
CC_Wet_mix — — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content 0.0 of wet season mix
EFF_P_Lwt 0.4 — (1,1,2,1,2,na) - Efficiency of use of absorbed protein partitioned to liveweight. Mariz, L.D.S. 2018 J. Anim Sci 96: 670-683 doi: 10.1093/jas/sky018
BioC_inputs 1182.381695 Hay*DM_hay*CC_Hay+Copra*DM_Copra*CC_Copra+Molasses*DM_Molasses*CC_Molasses+Cottonseed*DM_Cottonseed*CC_Cottonseed+Protein_Pellets*DM_Protein_Pellets*CC_Protein_Pellets+PUR_Bulls*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle kg biogenic carbon inputs from feeds
KM_Copra 600.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for copra (km)
Calves_weaned 86.265 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Number of calves weaned using herd structure from from Breedcow Beef CRC templates (Holmes et al. 2011) and farm gross margins (New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
AF_Hay -0.7 — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for hay (kMol/kg) based on (Slatery et al.).
BioC_all__corr_CulledBreeders 357.42527740113997 BioC_Actual_CulledBreeders-BioC_CurrentAll_CulledBreeders This is the correction to the biogenic carbon required to balance the biogenic carbon for culled breeders in kg C.
All_PrimeCattle_Eco 9.324222605657422 (P_PrimeCattle*KG_PrimeCattle)/(P_PrimeCattle*KG_PrimeCattle+P_CulledBreeders*KG_CulledBreeders+KG_Weaners*P_weaners)*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Economic allocation fraction for Prime cattle - default for AusLCI (%)
Evap_water_loss_T 1101.734924 Evap_water_loss*HA_GRAZING (1,1,1,1,1,na) 1.05 Uncertainty. Total evaporative water loss from farm dams (ML/year)
Vaccine 373.146 (Cows+Calves_weaned)*Vaccine_vol (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Vaccine administered for clostridial and reproductive diseases (ml).
DM_Livecattle 0.319 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of cattle
F_Murray_NSW_VIC_and_SA 0.178 — Fraction of Murray, NSW, VIC and SA, AU catchment in livestock region.
BioC_CurrentAll_Weaners 3074.5016344014493 (BioC_Products+BioC_all_Corr_Primecattle)*All_Weaners/100 Due to the allocation approach this is how much biogenic CO2 is being directed to the weaner product. in kg C. This is likely not the correct amount.
Tot_En 81768005.6 En_CulledBreeders+En_PrimeCattle+En_Weaners (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total calorific value (kcal) of co-products.
DM_Protein_Pellets 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of protein pellets
EN_PrimeCattle 6777669.499999999 EN_lwt*1000*KG_PrimeCattle (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total calorific value (kcal) of PrimeCattle.
KM_Cattle 110.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for purchased bulls (km). See Durr et al. 2010 at https://www.researchgate.net/publication/287990558_GIS_mapping_of_cattle_market_service_areas_using_the_National_Livestock_Identification_System_NLIS_-_Final_report
PUR_Bulls 693.0 PUR_Bulls_WT*PUR_Bulls_NO (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total liveweight of replacement bulls purchased each year (kg)
All_CulledBreeders_En 31.92585401642718 En_CulledBreeders/Tot_En*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to CulledBreeders based on energy content (%)
AF_Cattle 0.34 — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for red meat (kMol/kg) based on (Slattery et al.).
Cattle 185.03 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total number of cattle (Adult Equivalents) carried for the year using herd structure from from Breedcow Beef CRC templates (Holmes et al. 2011) and farm gross margins (New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
KM_Molasses 400.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for molasses (km)
EN_CulledBreeders 26105134.1 En_lwt*1000*KG_CulledBreeders (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total calorific value (kcal) of VulledBreeders.
CC_Hay 0.4 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.4 as DM, NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
CC_Dry_mix — — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content 0.0 of dry season mix
IntParasites_cows 2.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) -Number of internal parasite treatments for cows (New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
DM_Dry_mix 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of dry season mix
IntParasites_weaners 2.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) -Number of internal parasite treatments for weaners (New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
Dry_mix 1739.545 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total dry season lick (kg)
KM_Lick 400.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for dry and wet season lick (km)
TRANS_cattle 76.22999999999999 PUR_Bulls/1000*KM_Cattle (2,1,1,1,1,na) 2 Uncertainty. Livestock transport for purchased cattle (t.km).
ENT_CH4 9669.101 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg Methane from enteric fermentation. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
P_PrimeCattle 4.16 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) Average price for Young Cattle Indicator (Eastern and Western) and National Feeder Steer ($/kg live weight sold) from MLA https://www.mla.com/prices-markets/statistics/ for 5 year period 2019 - 2024.
DMI 467106.305 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg Dry matter intake. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
BioC_Actual_CulledBreeders 1453.2896573690002 kg_Culledbreeders*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle The actual amount of biogenic carbon which should be allocated culled breeders in kg C.
Elec 1.913 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) Electricity (kWh/Cow mated) calculated from economic data reported in farm survey data from ABARES for 2018-2022 (https://www.agriculture.gov.au/abares/data/farm-data-portal).
Soil_C_Change_Switch — — By default the switch is set to 0 to not soil carbon change. To include the value for soil carbon change set the switch to 1. The results still contain significant uncertainty and should be used with extreme care. -
BioC_CurrentAll_CulledBreeders 1095.8643799678603 (BioC_Products+BioC_all_Corr_Primecattle)*All_Culledbreeders/100 Due to the allocation approach this is how much biogenic CO2 is being directed to the culled breeders product. in kg C. This is likely not the correct amount.
CC_Copra 0.45 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.5 as DM
PUR_Bulls_NO 0.825 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Number of replacement bulls purchased per year. Breedcow Beef CRC templates (Holmes et al. 2011) and Gross Margin publications (New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
ID_tags 2156.625 Calves_weaned*ID_tag (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Weight of ID tags total (g)
HA_GRAZING 2839.523 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Hectares grazing land by Livestock Region based on based on SA2 Level data from Agricultural Commodities data for five years from 2017/18-2021/22 (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2023) and Land Use of Australia (ABARES 2025).
F_Lachlan_NSW 0.071 — Fraction of Lachlan, NSW, AU catchment in livestock region.
All_Pro_CulledBreeders 31.925854016427174 Pro_CulledBreeders/Pro_Total*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to Culled Breeders based on protein requirement (%)
N_Mineralised — Soil_C_loss*soil_NC_frac [Kg N] The amount of N released from SOC mineralisation - Calculated
ATMOS_N2O 4.096 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg N2O from N deposited from atmosphere. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
AF_Wet_mix — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for urea (kMol/kg) assuming 30% urea in wet season mix, based on (Baldock et al. 2009).
Evap_water_loss 0.388 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dams (ML/ha/year). Dam density described by NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025) with evaporation rate from Bureau of Metorology 1990-2020.
Anthelmintics 373.146 (Cows*IntParasites_cows)+(Calves_weaned*IntParasites_weaners) (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Number of doses of anthelmintic adimistered for internal parasites
All_PrimeCattle 9.324222605657422 iff(Allocation=1;All_PrimeCattle_Eco;iff(Allocation=2; All_PrimeCattle_EN; iff(Allocation =3; All_PrimeCattle_Mass; All_Pro_PrimeCattle))) (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to prime cattle. (%)
BioC_Actual_Primecattle 377.317233755 kg_Primecattle*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle The actual amount of biogenic carbon which should be allocated Prime cattle in kg C.
All_Pro_Weaners 59.78524441349465 Pro_Weaners/Pro_Total*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to Weaners based on protein requirement (%)
AF_Dry_mix 0.012 — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for urea (kMol/kg) assuming 30% urea in dry season mix, based on (Baldock et al. 2009).
Vaccine_vol 2.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Volume of individual vaccine (ml)
All_PrimeCattle_En 8.288901570078162 En_PrimeCattle/Tot_En*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to PrimeCattle based on energy content (%)
MAN_CH4 589.439 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg Methane from manure. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
TotalTkmRoad 1014.0747399359999 (Dry_mix*KM_Lick+Wet_mix*KM_LICK+Hay*KM_Hay+Copra*KM_Copra+Molasses*KM_Molasses+Cottonseed*KM_Cottonseed+Protein_Pellets*KM_Protein_Pellets+Tot_P_fert*KM_fert+Fuel_use*0.84*KM_fuel)/1000 (3,1,1,1,1,na) 2.1 Uncertainty. Total transport for inputs to the system in tkm. All assumed to be transported by articulated trucks.
EN_Weaners 48885202.0 EN_lwt*1000*KG_Weaners (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total calorific value (kcal) of Weaners.
Cottonseed — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total cottonseed fed (kg)