LCA is an internationally standardized method (ISO 14040, ISO 14044) for the evaluation of the environmental burdens and resources consumed along the life cycle of products. ISO 14040-14044 defines the term “product” as both “goods” (e.g., consumer goods, intermediate goods) and “services” and provides robust and practice-proven requirements for performing transparent and accepted carbon footprint calculations. Carbon footprint is the overall amount of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and other greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (e.g., methane, laughing gas, etc.) associated with a product. The phases of a LCA consists of 4 steps:

• Definition of Goal and Scope
• Inventory Analysis
• Impact Assessment
• Interpretation

In order to be assessed the current environmental impact of a product or service and then set future targets for improvement, as well to be compared with other similar products LCA can be applied and consists of five phases:

• Raw Material Extraction
• Manufacturing & Processing
• Transportation
• Usage & Retail
• Waste Disposal