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Cattle, prime beef, live weight, Darling {AU-QLD}| AusLCI, U

Unit process v00.00.000

This dataset represents the production of cattle for beef. The reference flow is 1000 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: 312329.699 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: Darling, Queensland, 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
Contributor
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Last updated
26 Aug 2024
Reference ID
e0018498-20c1-3c99-9679-f322044ee7db

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Documentation

Quantitative reference
Cattle, prime beef, live weight, Darling {AU-QLD}| 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, Darling , biogenic C not balanced {AU-QLD}| AusLCI, U 72787.053 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, Darling {AU-QLD}| AusLCI, U 312329.699 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.

Technical inputs

Flow AmountUnitComment
Carbon correction factor {AU}| | AusLCI, U 3750.5996166417026 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 3712.0159999999996 Item(s) (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Internal parasite treatments for the herd.
Cattle, prime beef, live weight, Darling {AU-QLD}| AusLCI, U 4143.8099999999995 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 12840.03 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 3712.0159999999996 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 225407.96 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.07. Total cottonseed meal for herd from matching geographical region/state.
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.
Dry season mix, 30% urea, 5.5% P, at production {AU}| | AusLCI, U 0.0 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 2113.012678 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 4075.157 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, dryland, Darling D {AU-QLD}| oats production | AusLCI, U 21349.5 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 21400.05 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 647.003882 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 91610.231978264 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 455.81909999999993 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 290154.7735951993 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 4075.157 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 4075.157 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 4075.157 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, Border Rivers, NSW and QLD, AU — 4384787.36465 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 Border Rivers, NSW and QLD, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Border Rivers, NSW and QLD, AU — 142.235204771 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Border Rivers, NSW and QLD, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Burnett and Brisbane River, QLD, AU — 55.80519995800001 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Burnett and Brisbane River, QLD, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Burnett and Brisbane River, QLD, AU — 1720347.1957000003 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 Burnett and Brisbane River, QLD, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Condamine-Balonne, NSW and QLD, AU — 14853729.4458 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 Condamine-Balonne, NSW and QLD, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Condamine-Balonne, NSW and QLD, AU — 481.830263052 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Condamine-Balonne, NSW and QLD, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Moonie, QLD, AU — 0.680551219 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in Moonie, QLD, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, Moonie, QLD, AU — 20979.84385 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 Moonie, QLD, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, NE Coast other than Burd., Fitz.,..., QLD, AU — 0.0094596619441 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in NE Coast other than Burd., Fitz.,..., QLD, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, NE Coast other than Burd., Fitz.,..., QLD, AU — 291.61982951500005 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 NE Coast other than Burd., Fitz.,..., QLD, AU catchment.
Water, unspecified natural origin, South East Coast, NSW, VIC and SA, AU — 0.0 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 — 0.0 ML (2,1,1,1,1,na) Evaporative water loss from farm dam occuring in South East Coast, NSW, VIC and SA, AU catchment.

Elementary flow outputs

Flow CompartmentSub-compartment AmountUnitComment
Ammonia Emission to airunspecified 9245.098545454546 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.4. NH3 emission
Area grazed Non material emissions— 4075.157 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 458.148 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.4. N2O Dung and Urine
Dinitrogen monoxide Emission to airunspecified 41.818 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.4. N2O leaching and runoff
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 48.106 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.4. N2O atmospheric deposition
Enteric methane Non material emissions— 134347.697 kg —
Evaporative water loss Non material emissions— 680551.219 m3 —
Livestock N2O all sources Non material emissions— 499966048.106 kg —
Methane, non-fossil Emission to airunspecified 8898.486 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.21. Manure Methane
Methane, non-fossil Emission to airunspecified 2347.290432 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.21. Farm dam Methane
Methane, non-fossil Emission to airunspecified 134347.697 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.21. Enteric Methane
Nitrogen Emission to waterground water 2392.6283599999997 kg (2,1,1,1,1,na) Uncertainty 1.5. N leached from Dung and Urine
Water intake of livestock Non material emissions— 20979.84385 m3 —
hydrogen ions Emissions to soil— 121.95167468000002 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
ATMOS_N2O 48.106 — (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)
CC_Copra 0.45 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.5 as DM
BioC_as_CH4_emissions 109195.10507399999 (Ent_CH4+Man_CH4+Dam_Ch4)*12/16 kg biogenic carbon emitted as methane from various sources.
KG_CulledBreeders 72787.053 — (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).
DM_Dry_mix 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of dry season mix
All_Weaners_En — En_Weaners/Tot_En*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to Weaners based on energy content (%)
All_Weaners — 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. (%)
F_Condamine_Balonne_NSW_and_QLD 0.708 — Fraction of Condamine-Balonne, NSW and QLD, AU catchment in livestock region.
Calves_weaned 856.002 — (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).
ENT_CH4 134347.697 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg Methane from enteric fermentation. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
PUR_Bulls_NO 4.763 — (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).
AF_Hay -0.7 — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for hay (kMol/kg) based on (Slatery et al.).
EN_CulledBreeders 225639864.3 En_lwt*1000*KG_CulledBreeders (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total calorific value (kcal) of VulledBreeders.
N_Mineralised — Soil_C_loss*soil_NC_frac [Kg N] The amount of N released from SOC mineralisation - Calculated
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_Pro_CulledBreeders 18.899996591163607 Pro_CulledBreeders/Pro_Total*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to Culled Breeders based on protein requirement (%)
ID_tags 21400.05 Calves_weaned*ID_tag (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Weight of ID tags total (g)
BioC_Actual_Primecattle 53901.547123721015 kg_Primecattle*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle The actual amount of biogenic carbon which should be allocated Prime cattle in kg C.
All_PrimeCattle_Eco 86.74313719489729 (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 (%)
All_PrimeCattle 86.74313719489729 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. (%)
F_Moonie_QLD 0.001 — Fraction of Moonie, QLD, AU catchment in livestock region.
Cattle 2279.396 — (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).
BioC_inputs 96525.04894599 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_Cottonseed 400.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for cottonseed (km)
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)
Anthelmintics 3712.0159999999996 (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
PUR_Bulls_WT 870.0 — (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).
Sorghum_graz — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total area of forage sorghum grazed (ha)
P_PrimeCattle 4.076 — (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.
Molasses — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total molasses fed (kg)
Protein_Pellets — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total protein pellets 20% CP fed (kg)
DM_Molasses 0.825 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of molasses
CC_Wet_mix — — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content 0.0 of wet season mix
NAAR_Cattle 130.93969568000003 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
NAAR_Inputs -8.988021 (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)
KM_Protein_pellets 600.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for protein_pellets (km)
BioC_all__corr_CulledBreeders 3253.387771094822 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.
Oats_graz 213.495 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total area of forage oats grazed (ha)
BioC_Actual_CulledBreeders 12561.516819687002 kg_Culledbreeders*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle The actual amount of biogenic carbon which should be allocated culled breeders in kg C.
Fuel 0.647 — (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).
BioC_Products 66463.06394340801 Producttotal*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle kg biogenic carbon in outputs of all products in the inventory before applying allocation
Elec 2.113 — (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).
Fuel_use 647.003882 Fuel*Cows (1,1,1,1,1,na) 1.05 Uncertainty. Whole farm fuel use (L)
BioC_all_Corr_Primecattle 3750.5996166417026 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.
F_Burnett_and_Brisbane_River_QLD 0.082 — Fraction of Burnett and Brisbane River, QLD, AU catchment in livestock region.
KM_Hay 100.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for hay (km)
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).
Cottonseed 225407.96 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total cottonseed fed (kg)
EFN_Leach 0.011 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Emissions factor for proportion of N leached released as N2O.
Pro_Total 30809.340160000007 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_Pro_PrimeCattle 81.1000034088364 Pro_PrimeCattle/Pro_Total*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to Prime Cattle based on protein requirement (%)
Pro_CulledBreeders 5822.964240000001 KG_CulledBreeders*PC_Lwt*EFF_P_Lwt (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total protein requirement to produce Culled Breeders (kg)
Copra — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total copra meal fed (kg)
BioC_Pasture_nett 79133.12007141799 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.
ID_tagbad 25.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Was listed as Total drinking water intake (L/year)
Water 20979843.85 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total drinking water intake (L/year)
CC_Molasses 0.347 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.42 as DM
TotalTkmRoad 91610.231978264 (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.
Vaccine 3712.0159999999996 (Cows+Calves_weaned)*Vaccine_vol (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Vaccine administered for clostridial and reproductive diseases (ml).
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).
Wet_mix — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total wet season lick (kg)
EFN_mineral 0.004 — (1,3,2,1,1,na) - [kgN2O-N/kgN] emission factor for N emissions from mineralisations - NIR 2023 (DCCEEW, 2025).
DAM_CH4 2347.290432 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)
DeterminingProd 312329.699 KG_PrimeCattle (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.
HA_GRAZING 4075.157 — (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).
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
EN_Weaners — EN_lwt*1000*KG_Weaners (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total calorific value (kcal) of Weaners.
KG_PrimeCattle 312329.699 — (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 2113.012678 Elec*Cows (1,1,1,1,1,na) 1.05 Uncertainty. Whole farm electricity use (kWh)
All_CulledBreeders_Eco 13.2568628051027 (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
Cows 1000.006 — (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).
AF_Protein_Pellets — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for protein pellets (kMol/kg) based on (Baldock et al. 2009).
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).
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. -
TRANS_cattle 455.81909999999993 PUR_Bulls/1000*KM_Cattle (2,1,1,1,1,na) 2 Uncertainty. Livestock transport for purchased cattle (t.km).
KM_Molasses 400.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for molasses (km)
Tot_En 1193861931.2 En_CulledBreeders+En_PrimeCattle+En_Weaners (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total calorific value (kcal) of co-products.
All_CulledBreeders_En 18.899996591163607 En_CulledBreeders/Tot_En*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to CulledBreeders based on energy content (%)
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.
Evap_water_loss 0.167 — (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.
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
CC_Hay 0.4 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.4 as DM, NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
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
KM_Copra 600.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for copra (km)
KM_fert 200.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for fertiliser to farm (km)
Evap_water_loss_T 680.5512190000001 Evap_water_loss*HA_GRAZING (1,1,1,1,1,na) 1.05 Uncertainty. Total evaporative water loss from farm dams (ML/year)
BioC_CurrentAll_PrimeCattle 57652.14674036272 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.
F_NE_Coast_other_than_Burd_Fitz_QLD 0.0000139 — Fraction of NE Coast other than Burd., Fitz.,..., QLD, AU catchment in livestock region.
ProductTotal 385116.75200000004 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)
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).
AF_Cattle 0.34 — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for red meat (kMol/kg) based on (Slattery et al.).
All_CulledBreeders_Mass 18.899996591163603 kg_CulledBreeders/ProductTotal*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Mass allocation fraction for Culled cattle (%)
KG_Weaners — — (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).
All_Weaners_Eco — (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 (%)
PUR_Bulls 4143.8099999999995 PUR_Bulls_WT*PUR_Bulls_NO (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total liveweight of replacement bulls purchased each year (kg)
Vaccine_vol 2.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Volume of individual vaccine (ml)
AF_Copra — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for copra (kMol/kg) based on web search unspecifed sources.
DM_Copra 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of copra
BioC_CurrentAll_CulledBreeders 9308.12904859218 (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.
oat_yield 100.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) Yield of grazing oats
LEACH_N2O 41.818 — (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.
All_PrimeCattle_En 81.1000034088364 En_PrimeCattle/Tot_En*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to PrimeCattle based on energy content (%)
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
DU_N2O 458.148 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg N2O from dung and urine. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
P_CulledBreeders 2.673 — (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_CulledBreeders 13.2568628051027 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. (%)
KM_Lick 400.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for dry and wet season lick (km)
BioC_CurrentAll_Weaners — (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.
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
DM_Hay 0.88 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of hay
MAN_CH4 8898.486 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg Methane from manure. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
AF_Cottonseed — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for cottonseed (kMol/kg) based on (Baldock et al. 2009).
DAM_CH4_HA 0.576 — (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).
DM_Protein_Pellets 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of protein pellets
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).
Pro_PrimeCattle 24986.375920000006 KG_PrimeCattle*PC_Lwt*EFF_P_Lwt (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total protein requirement to produce PrimeCattle (kg)
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
DM_Cottonseed 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of cottonseed
DM_Livecattle 0.319 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of cattle
Dry_mix — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total dry season lick (kg)
EN_PrimeCattle 968222066.9000001 EN_lwt*1000*KG_PrimeCattle (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total calorific value (kcal) of PrimeCattle.
Hay 12840.03 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Total hay fed (kg)
N_LeachGW 2392.6283599999997 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).
F_South_East_Coast_NSW_VIC_and_SA — — Fraction of South East Coast, NSW, VIC and SA, AU catchment in livestock region.
DM_Wet_mix 0.9 — (2,3,3,1,1,na) - Dry matter fraction of wet season mix
KM_fuel 300.0 — (3,1,1,1,1,na) Estimate of transport distance for fuel to farm (km)
All_PrimeCattle_Mass 81.1000034088364 kg_PrimeCattle/ProductTotal*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Mass allocation fraction for Prime cattle (%)
Pro_Weaners — KG_Weaners*PC_Lwt*EFF_P_Lwt (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Total protein requirement to produce Weaners (kg)
All_Pro_Weaners — Pro_Weaners/Pro_Total*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Allocation to Weaners based on protein requirement (%)
BioC_all__corr_Weaners — 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.
BioC_Actual_Weaners — kg_Weaners*DM_Livecattle*CC_Livecattle The actual amount of biogenic carbon which should be allocated weaners in kg C.
CC_Protein_Pellets 0.405 — (2,3,1,1,1,na) Carbon content of 0.5 as DM
CC_Cottonseed 0.45 — (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
DMI 6490226.888 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) kg Dry matter intake. Calculated using GAFF Beef and Sheep based on NIR 2023 (DCCEEW 2025)
ID_tag 25.0 — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Weight of plastic ID tag individual (g)
Soil_C_loss — — (2,1,1,1,1,na) Change in Soil Orgnic Carbon t C/ha/year in 0-30cm layer
PR_fert 1.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na) - Proportion of grazed area fertilsed with single superphosphate
Allocation 1.0 — Allocation switch, 1 = Economic alocation (default for AusLCI), 2 = Energy allocation, 3 = Mass allocation, 4 = Protein Allocation.
TotN_LeachGW 2419.24 — (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)
All_Weaners_Mass — kg_Weaners/ProductTotal*100 (2,1,1,1,1,na) 1.07 Uncertainty. Mass allocation fraction for Weaner cattle (%)
P_Weaners 3.74 — (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.
F_Border_Rivers_NSW_and_QLD 0.209 — Fraction of Border Rivers, NSW and QLD, AU catchment in livestock region.
AF_Molasses — — (2,2,2,2,1,na) - Acid factor for molasses (kMol/kg) based on (Baldock et al. 2009).
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).