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Cattle, prime beef, live weight, South West {AU-VIC}| 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: 9269.453 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: South West, Victoria, 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

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Material
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Last updated
26 Aug 2024
Reference ID
c3f04fd1-a886-375c-8533-8f790f9ba56b

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Documentation

Quantitative reference
Cattle, prime beef, live weight, South West {AU-VIC}| 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, South West , biogenic C not balanced {AU-VIC}| AusLCI, U 5947.725 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, South West {AU-VIC}| AusLCI, U 9269.453 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, South West , biogenic C not balanced {AU-VIC}| AusLCI, U 14937.517 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 98.14538261999496 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 378.0 Item(s) (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Internal parasite treatments for the herd.
Cattle, prime beef, live weight, South West {AU-VIC}| AusLCI, U 762.3 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 3115.0 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 378.0 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 1504.933 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 179.8 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 85.97 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 2225.0 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 859.7 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 64.8 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 1101.7428 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 83.853 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 43653.02459541833 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 85.97 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 85.97 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 85.97 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, Campaspe, VIC, AU — 0.0000043631494399999996 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Campaspe, VIC, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Campaspe, VIC, AU — 0.519315383808 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 Campaspe, VIC, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Loddon-Avoca, VIC, AU — 0.020976679999999998 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Loddon-Avoca, VIC, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Loddon-Avoca, VIC, AU — 2496.708576 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 Loddon-Avoca, VIC, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, South East Coast, NSW, VIC and SA, AU — 1121022.150624 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 South East Coast, NSW, VIC and SA, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, South East Coast, NSW, VIC and SA, AU — 9.41852932 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in South East Coast, NSW, VIC and SA, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Wimmera, VIC, AU — 124835.4288 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 Wimmera, VIC, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Wimmera, VIC, AU — 1.048834 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Wimmera, VIC, AU catchment.

Elementary flow outputs

Flow CompartmentSub-compartment AmountUnitComment
Ammonia Emission to airunspecified 1510.7412727272726 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.4. NH3 emission
Area grazed Non material emissions— 85.97 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 airunspecified 7.861 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.4. N2O atmospheric deposition
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 74.864 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.4. N2O Dung and Urine
Dinitrogen monoxide Emission to airunspecified 11.885 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.4. N2O leaching and runoff
Enteric methane Non material emissions— 10083.594 kg —
Evaporative water loss Non material emissions— 10488.339999999998 m3 —
Livestock N2O all sources Non material emissions— 86749007.86100002 kg —
Methane, non-fossil Emission to airunspecified 10083.594 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.21. Enteric Methane
Methane, non-fossil Emission to airunspecified 461.951 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.21. Manure Methane
Methane, non-fossil Emission to airunspecified 26.90861 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.21. Farm dam Methane
Nitrogen Emission to waterground water 679.975082 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.5. N leached from Dung and Urine
Water intake of livestock Non material emissions— 1248.354288 m3 —
hydrogen ions Emissions to soil— 8.090155496000001 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
EFN_Leach 0.011 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Emissions factor for proportion of N leached released as N2O.
All_PrimeCattle_Mass 30.739667570837643 kg_PrimeCattle/ProductTotal*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Mass allocation fraction for Prime cattle (%)
AF_Protein_Pellets — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for protein pellets (kMol/kg) based on (Baldock et al. 2009).
KM_Molasses 400.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for molasses (km)
P_PrimeCattle 4.16 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) Average price for Young Cattle Indicator (Eastern and Western) and National Feeder Steer ($/kg live weight sold) from MLA https://www.mla.com/prices-markets/statistics/ for 5 year period 2019 - 2024.
BioC_Pasture_nett 11905.370344205 BioC_Products+BioC_as_CH4_emissions-BioC_inputs kg biogenic carbon added to cattle by pasture after accounting incoming feed, respiration, losses as methane and other losses from system.
DM_Dry_mix 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of dry season mix
EN_PrimeCattle 28735304.299999997 EN_lwt*1000*KG_PrimeCattle (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total calorific value (kcal) of PrimeCattle.
KG_Weaners 14937.517 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Quantity of Weaners sold (kg live weight) - both sexes < 1 year old, calculated using herd structure from Breedcow Beef CRC templates (Holmes et al. 2011), Gross Margin publications ( New South Wales Department of Primary Industries 2023; Ag Excellence Alliance 2024).
NAAR_Cattle 10.2525963 producttotal*af_cattle/1000 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Change in soil acidity (H ion eq/t) from export of cattle product
P_CulledBreeders 2.76 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) Average price for National Processor Cow Indicator ($/kg live weight sold) from MLA https://www.mla.com/prices-markets/statistics/ for 5 year period 2019 - 2024.
All_PrimeCattle_En 30.739667570837636 En_PrimeCattle/Tot_En*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to PrimeCattle based on energy content (%)
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).
KM_Cottonseed 400.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for cottonseed (km)
BioC_CurrentAll_CulledBreeders 736.4244688221505 (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.
Tot_P_fert 859.7 P_fert*HA_Grazing*PR_fert (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total fertiliser applied as single superphosphate (kg)
DM_Livecattle 0.319 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of cattle
DMI 487130.131 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg Dry matter intake. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
F_South_East_Coast_NSW_VIC_and_SA 0.898 — Fraction of South East Coast, NSW, VIC and SA, AU catchment in livestock region.
All_Weaners 53.4853929656146 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. (%)
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
LEACH_N2O 11.885 — (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.
Soil_C_loss — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Change in Soil Orgnic Carbon t C/ha/year in 0-30cm layer
Cows 100.0 — (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).
Protein_Pellets — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total protein pellets 20% CP fed (kg)
Elec_use 179.8 Elec*Cows (1,1,1,1,1,na) 1.05 Uncertainty. Whole farm electricity use (kWh)
DU_N2O 74.864 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg N2O from dung and urine. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
Oats_graz — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total area of forage oats grazed (ha)
BioC_all_Corr_Primecattle 98.14538261999496 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.
Fuel 0.648 — (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).
EN_Weaners 46306302.7 EN_lwt*1000*KG_Weaners (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total calorific value (kcal) of Weaners.
BioC_CurrentAll_PrimeCattle 1697.8583119069951 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.
KM_Lick 400.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for dry and wet season lick (km)
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
Anthelmintics 378.0 (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
BioC_CurrentAll_Weaners 2835.9091866966214 (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.
BioC_Actual_CulledBreeders 1026.4524327750003 kg_Culledbreeders*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle The actual amount of biogenic carbon which should be allocated culled breeders in kg C.
P_Weaners 4.232 — (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.
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
All_PrimeCattle_Eco 32.625603716078395 (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 (%)
PR_fert 1.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) - Proportion of grazed area fertilsed with single superphosphate
DM_Hay 0.88 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of hay
Pro_Total 2412.3756000000003 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)
CC_Copra 0.45 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.5 as DM
EFN_mineral 0.004 — (1,3,2,1,1,na) - [kgN2O-N/kgN] emission factor for N emissions from mineralisations - NIR 2023 (DCCEEW, 2025).
Dry_mix 1504.933 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total dry season lick (kg)
DAM_CH4 26.90861 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)
DM_Copra 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of copra
DAM_CH4_HA 0.313 — (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).
oat_yield 100.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) Yield of grazing oats
P_fert 10.0 — (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).
Elec 1.798 — (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).
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
AF_Molasses — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for molasses (kMol/kg) based on (Baldock et al. 2009).
N_Mineralised — Soil_C_loss*soil_NC_frac [Kg N] The amount of N released from SOC mineralisation - Calculated
BioC_all__corr_Weaners -258.0074403536214 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.
CC_Wet_mix — — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content 0.0 of wet season mix
Cattle 203.294 — (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).
ID_tag 25.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Weight of plastic ID tag individual (g)
TotN_LeachGW 687.538 — (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)
DeterminingProd 14937.517 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.
KM_Hay 100.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for hay (km)
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
NAAR_Inputs -2.162440804 (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)
Pro_PrimeCattle 741.55624 KG_PrimeCattle*PC_Lwt*EFF_P_Lwt (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total protein requirement to produce PrimeCattle (kg)
ID_tagbad 25.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Was listed as Total drinking water intake (L/year)
PUR_Bulls_NO 0.99 — (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).
BioC_Actual_Primecattle 1599.7129292870002 kg_Primecattle*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle The actual amount of biogenic carbon which should be allocated Prime cattle in kg C.
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).
MAN_CH4 461.951 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg Methane from manure. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
PUR_Bulls_WT 770.0 — (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).
F_Wimmera_VIC 0.1 — Fraction of Wimmera, VIC, AU catchment in livestock region.
All_Weaners_En 49.53628945674961 En_Weaners/Tot_En*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to Weaners based on energy content (%)
BioC_as_CH4_emissions 7929.340207499999 (Ent_CH4+Man_CH4+Dam_Ch4)*12/16 kg biogenic carbon emitted as methane from various sources.
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. -
KG_PrimeCattle 9269.453 — (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).
Calves_weaned 89.0 — (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).
ProductTotal 30154.695 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)
CC_Molasses 0.347 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.42 as DM
TotalTkmRoad 1101.7428 (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.
AF_Copra — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for copra (kMol/kg) based on web search unspecifed sources.
KM_Protein_pellets 600.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for protein_pellets (km)
ID_tags 2225.0 Calves_weaned*ID_tag (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Weight of ID tags total (g)
PUR_Bulls 762.3 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_Weaners_Mass 49.53628945674961 kg_Weaners/ProductTotal*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Mass allocation fraction for Weaner cattle (%)
BioC_Products 5204.067108405 Producttotal*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle kg biogenic carbon in outputs of all products in the inventory before applying allocation
Fuel_use 64.8 Fuel*Cows (1,1,1,1,1,na) 1.05 Uncertainty. Whole farm fuel use (L)
All_Pro_Weaners 49.5362894567496 Pro_Weaners/Pro_Total*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to Weaners based on protein requirement (%)
Allocation 1.0 — Allocation switch, 1 = Economic alocation (default for AusLCI), 2 = Energy allocation, 3 = Mass allocation, 4 = Protein Allocation.
Sorghum_graz — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total area of forage sorghum grazed (ha)
KG_CulledBreeders 5947.725 — (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).
KM_Copra 600.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for copra (km)
Vaccine_vol 2.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Volume of individual vaccine (ml)
Hay 3115.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total hay fed (kg)
All_CulledBreeders_Mass 19.724042972412757 kg_CulledBreeders/ProductTotal*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Mass allocation fraction for Culled cattle (%)
HA_GRAZING 85.97 — (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).
DM_Molasses 0.825 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of molasses
Copra — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total copra meal fed (kg)
AF_Cottonseed — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for cottonseed (kMol/kg) based on (Baldock et al. 2009).
BioC_all__corr_CulledBreeders 290.02796395284975 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.
Water 1248354.288 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total drinking water intake (L/year)
Wet_mix — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total wet season lick (kg)
All_PrimeCattle 32.625603716078395 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. (%)
Evap_water_loss 0.122 — (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.
All_Pro_CulledBreeders 19.724042972412754 Pro_CulledBreeders/Pro_Total*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to Culled Breeders based on protein requirement (%)
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_Cottonseed 0.45 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.4 as DM, NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
Pro_CulledBreeders 475.81800000000004 KG_CulledBreeders*PC_Lwt*EFF_P_Lwt (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total protein requirement to produce Culled Breeders (kg)
F_Campaspe_VIC 0.000000416 — Fraction of Campaspe, VIC, AU catchment in livestock region.
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.
Pro_Weaners 1195.00136 KG_Weaners*PC_Lwt*EFF_P_Lwt (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total protein requirement to produce Weaners (kg)
EN_CulledBreeders 18437947.5 En_lwt*1000*KG_CulledBreeders (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total calorific value (kcal) of VulledBreeders.
Molasses — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total molasses fed (kg)
CC_Dry_mix — — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content 0.0 of dry season mix
CC_Protein_Pellets 0.405 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.5 as DM
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
KM_fert 200.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for fertiliser to farm (km)
TRANS_cattle 83.853 PUR_Bulls/1000*KM_Cattle (2,1,1,1,1,na) 2 Uncertainty. Livestock transport for purchased cattle (t.km).
All_Pro_PrimeCattle 30.739667570837636 Pro_PrimeCattle/Pro_Total*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to Prime Cattle based on protein requirement (%)
CC_Hay 0.4 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.4 as DM, NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
All_CulledBreeders 13.889003318307013 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. (%)
DM_Cottonseed 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of cottonseed
AF_Cattle 0.34 — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for red meat (kMol/kg) based on (Slattery et al.).
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).
BioC_Actual_Weaners 2577.901746343 kg_Weaners*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle The actual amount of biogenic carbon which should be allocated weaners in kg C.
N_LeachGW 679.975082 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).
BioC_inputs 1228.0369717 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
All_CulledBreeders_En 19.724042972412754 En_CulledBreeders/Tot_En*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to CulledBreeders based on energy content (%)
Evap_water_loss_T 10.488339999999999 Evap_water_loss*HA_GRAZING (1,1,1,1,1,na) 1.05 Uncertainty. Total evaporative water loss from farm dams (ML/year)
AF_Hay -0.7 — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for hay (kMol/kg) based on (Slatery et al.).
Tot_En 93479554.5 En_CulledBreeders+En_PrimeCattle+En_Weaners (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total calorific value (kcal) of co-products.
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.)
All_Weaners_Eco 53.4853929656146 (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 (%)
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).
All_CulledBreeders_Eco 13.889003318307013 (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
ENT_CH4 10083.594 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg Methane from enteric fermentation. 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
Cottonseed — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total cottonseed fed (kg)
KM_fuel 300.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for fuel to farm (km)
ATMOS_N2O 7.861 — (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)
F_Loddon_Avoca_VIC 0.002 — Fraction of Loddon-Avoca, VIC, AU catchment in livestock region.
DM_Protein_Pellets 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of protein pellets
Vaccine 378.0 (Cows+Calves_weaned)*Vaccine_vol (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Vaccine administered for clostridial and reproductive diseases (ml).