# Life-Cycle Assessment of Biofortified Productions: The Case of Selenium Potato
## 3 Results and Discussion
In the FE category, expressed in kg P eq, the selenium potato achieved better results in terms of environmental impact with a very low difference of \(-\)0.51% and a value of 1.82 attributable mainly to the sowing phase. Analyzing the ME, in kg N eq, the selenium potato showed a value of 2.27 and a reduction in impact compared to conventional by \(-\)2.12%. In this case, the sowing phase was the principal responsible and the difference was low but important in relation to the considered category and impact factors. Concerning TE, the biofortified crop confirmed its sustainability compared to conventional potatoes with a medium high difference of \(-\)12.76%; the indicator considered is expressed in 1.4-DCB kg and obtained a score of 51,387.26, largely attributable to sowing. The F category brought a substantial advantage of the biofortified crop over the conventional potato. It is expressed in kg 1.4-DCB, and it had a value of 632, showing an important reduction in impact of \(-\)24.32% to the advantage of selenium cultivation. In this case, it was the growth phase that created the greatest impact as a result of the widespread use of synthesis products. Moving on to category M, whose unit of measurement is 1.4-DCB kg, it obtained a value of 665.66 with a reduction in impact compared to the conventional one of \(-\)19.60%. This was a substantial difference mainly attributable to the growth phase of the crop. Even in the case of HCT, the selenium potato proved to be more sustainable than the conventional one. Expressed in 1.4-DCB kg, it achieved a score of 179.55 with an important reduction of \(-\)12.67% in relation to the considered category, whereby the growth phase also had a greater impact on the environment for the reasons listed above. The latter category analyzed was flanked by HNT with the same unit of measurement as the previous one and a value of 11,660.33 with a high reduction in impact compared to the conventional regime of \(-\)16.47%; however, in this case, it was the sowing phase of the crop responsible for the greater impact on human health. At this point, it is possible to analyze the LU category, expressed in m\({}^{2}\)a crop eq, which had the greatest impact on the selenium potato due to a greater number of distributions of synthesis products used to control weeds during the sowing phase; the value obtained was 681.77 with a difference of 1.17%. Although the latter was not sufficiently high, it underlined a marginal advantage for conventional cultivation. The MS expressed in kg Cu eq reported a value of 85.13 and a medium high reduction of \(-\)5.69%compared to conventional potatoes, important for the considered category. This was mainly attributable to the growth phase. For FS, on the other hand, the main responsibility was the sowing phase; the category examined, expressed in kg oil eq, obtained a value of 1540.87 and, therefore, had a difference of \(-\)17.05, with a decidedly lower impact than conventional potatoes. The last category analyzed is represented by the WC, expressed in m\({}^{3}\), which obtained a value of 2489.39 and a marginal difference to the conventional potato with respect to which it obtained an impact reduction of \(-\)1.23%. It was more attributable to the growth phase where irrigation interventions were more concentrated. In all the categories analyzed, the impact generated by harvesting was minimal as it did not involve the use of chemical inputs, and only the potato digging machine was used to assist the manual work carried out by farmers. Figure 5 highlights what has been said with respect to the most responsible phases of the various categories analyzed. The study presented some disadvantages related to the chosen crop, such as the limited number of farms analyzed because only they are present in the area considered and the lack of a certified protocol for the cultivation process of the selenium potato, replaced at the moment only by operational indications.