Analysis of Potential GHG Emissions from Tofu Industry and Its Mitigation in Indonesia: Analisis Potensi Emisi Gas Rumah Kaca dari Industri Tahu dan Mitigasinya di Indonesia

Tofu is one of the protein sources with high demand in Indonesia. Currently, several tofu industries have used stainless steel-based equipment. This condition shows the seriousness of the tofu industry to make hygienic tofu products. However, hygienic tofu products are not enough. The global market competition required the products to take notice not only of their quality but also of environmentally-friendly products characterized by a low value of CO2 emission. In accordance with the condition, studies related to calculating CO2 emissions resulting from a product are necessary. In this study, we conducted research on the estimation of CO2 emissions resulting from 1 kg of tofu using the LCA method and applying the system boundary from cradle to gate, in which greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions were calculated from soybeans plantation to 1 kg of tofu products. Case studies were conducted on three tofu industries, and it was found that the GHG emissions produced per 1 kg of tofu were in the range of 0.35–0.5 kg CO2 eq. Three main factors contribute to CO2 emissions, i.e., wastewater, soybean cultivation, and soybean transportation from plantation area to industry. Therefore, this study recommends the tofu industry reduce CO2 emissions resulting from wastewater. The alternative is to treat wastewater using an anaerobic system to produce biogas for cooking purposes.