## 5 Conclusions  
This study presents an original cradle-to-grave LCA framework that integrates RFID-specific impacts with spatio-temporal variation--an approach not previously applied to dairy FLW mitigation. The integration of RFID technology in the fresh milk supply chain offers a viable strategy for reducing FLW while simultaneously mitigating several key environmental impacts. From an LCA perspective, the findings indicate that, although the production and use of RFID tags entail certain environmental burdens, these are substantially outweighed by the benefits of reduced milk waste. The results demonstrate significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, particulate matter, land use, and water resource depletion across the EU fresh milk supply chain. For instance, the use of RFID led to a reduction of up to 80,000 tons of CO\({}_{2}\)-eq and significant savings in water and land resources. The spatial and temporal analysis across different EU regions showed consistent reductions in environmental impacts, underscoring the positive influence of RFID technology on the dairy supply chain's sustainability. Countries such as Germany, France, and Finland, in particular, exhibited significant environmental benefits, highlighting the potential for RFID technology to be instrumental in achieving EU sustainability goals. However, the results also suggest that the effectiveness of RFID deployment can vary based on regional factors, such as policy implementation and supply chain structure. Limitations of this study include a reliance on secondary data for RFID life cycle stages and simplified assumptions regarding infrastructure-related impacts. Future research should aim to validate these findings through real-world RFID trials, improve the resolution on energy use and disposal, and evaluate RFID alongside alternative digital traceability tools. Policymakers and industry stakeholders can use these insights to inform strategic decisions on digital interventions that reduce milk waste and improve food supply chain sustainability. The following supporting information can be downloaded at: [[https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/app15185806/s1](https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/app15185806/s1)]([https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/app15185806/s1](https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/app15185806/s1)), Figure S1: Milk production in EU-14 and EU-13 countries, in selected years (million t). Table S1: Bill of materials associated with producing 1 liter of high-quality milk sourced from two dairy factories, A and B. Table S2: Inventory analysis for each RFID tag composition. Table S3: LCI analysis for RFID tag. Table S4: LCI analysis of milk supply. Table S5: Raw milk, total available on dairies in the EU-27 (=total used). Unit: \(\times\)1000 ot. Table S6: Food waste (FW) across the EU for different milk and dairy products. References [13; 32; 33] are cited in the Supplementary Materials. **Author Contributions:** Conceptualization, J.W. and Y.Z. ; methodology, H.W. and D.Y.W. ; software, H.W. and D.Y.W. ; validation, Y.Z., J.W., F.Z. and A.M.; formal analysis, Y.Z., J.W., F.Z. and A.M.; investigation, F.Z. ; resources, Y.Z. and A.M.; data curation, H.W. and D.Y.W. ; writing--original draft preparation, Y.Z. ; writing--review and editing, J.W., F.Z. and A.M.; visualization, J.W. and D.Y.W. ; supervision, J.W. and A.M.; project administration, A.M.; funding acquisition, Y.Z. and A.M. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript. **Funding:** This research was funded by the Guizhou Association for Science and Technology Youth Voyage Program, Grant Number 2025 XZQYYM-01-33 and the Guizhou University of Commerce Research Project, Grant Number 2024 XJSDZD02. **Institutional Review Board Statement:** Not applicable. **Informed Consent Statement:** Not applicable. **Data Availability Statement:** The data presented in this study is available on request from the corresponding author.