A production mix is a production-volume-weighted average of the suppliers of a specific product within a geographical area. It captures the aggregated supply characteristics of a product based on the actual market shares of different producers in that region.
In Life Cycle Assessment, the production mix is useful for modelling the average environmental profile of products where multiple suppliers exist within a defined geographical boundary. Rather than selecting a single supplier's data, the production mix combines data from all relevant suppliers, weighted according to their respective production volumes. This weighting ensures that larger producers have proportionally greater influence on the average profile than smaller ones, reflecting the reality of market supply.
The production mix approach is particularly important in consequential LCA when determining which technologies or suppliers will actually respond to changes in demand. By understanding the composition of current supply, practitioners can better identify the marginal suppliers most likely to adjust their production volumes in response to market changes.
ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 do not explicitly define production mix, but it fits the standards' principles for representative data collection and system boundary definition. When building Activity datasets, production mixes provide a systematic method for aggregating unit process data across multiple facilities or technologies producing the same product.
Production mix and supply mix should not be confused. Whilst production mix covers only the domestic production within a geographical area, the supply mix extends this to include imports, representing the total supply available to consumers in that region.
As Chief Operating Officer, Iris leads our organisational development and oversees day-to-day operations. Before joining 2-0, she worked in the biotechnology sector. As an LCA consultant, Iris has devoted her expertise primarily to the domains of sustainable agriculture and food production. She is dedicated to teaching LCA and is responsible for our educational efforts. Iris holds an M.Sc. in Biology – Biotechnology from the University of Copenhagen.
Contact for: LCA Training
Glossary terms are clearer once you have seen them applied. Our guide to what LCA is and how it works walks through the complete methodology: goal and scope, inventory modelling, impact assessment, and interpretation.
If you are working on an LCA study and want it done properly, see how we approach life cycle assessment.
