Converting Agribalyse to EcoSpold 1, EcoSpold 2 and ILCD: first tests

VoLCA can load an LCA database and export it to several exchange formats. The supported conversion paths currently include SimaPro CSV, ILCD, EcoSpold 1, EcoSpold 2 and Brightway Excel. Brightway Excel is an .xlsx workbook convention used by Brightway’s import and export tools, rather than a standalone LCA exchange standard.

To test this capability on a complete public database, Agribalyse 3.2 was loaded from its SimaPro CSV export and converted into three target formats:

Agribalyse 3.2 SimaPro CSV
  → ILCD ZIP
  → EcoSpold 1 XML
  → EcoSpold 2 ZIP

This is a first full-database conversion trial, not a claim that every target file has already been validated in every LCA tool. The initial checks establish that VoLCA produced complete, structurally readable outputs. The next step is a series of bounded cross-tool import tests, each recording the tool, version, outcome and warnings.

One source database, three target formats

The fresh Agribalyse import contained 21,510 products/processes.

VoLCA then generated:

The conversion therefore completed for all three requested formats and retained the expected top-level dataset count in each output.

The header image is a screenshot of the conversion report. It shows the dataset counts, output sizes, durations and warnings recorded for the trial.

What was checked after export

Generating a file is only the first step. The trial also checked that the outputs were complete and readable:

• the ILCD archive passed its built-in integrity check and every XML file could be read;
• the EcoSpold 1 document was complete and readable;
• the EcoSpold 2 archive passed its built-in integrity check and every dataset could be read;
• conversion durations and warnings were recorded for each output.

These checks can detect damaged or incomplete files. They do not yet prove that another LCA application will interpret every converted field in the same way. The detailed checks and file identities remain available on the linked conversion example page for readers who need them.

What the ILCD conversion reported

The ILCD export completed with 21,510 process datasets and 1,626 explicit multi-output grouping warnings.

Agribalyse contains 1,626 multi-output activities. The selected ILCD profile cannot preserve their original grouping, so VoLCA exported product-specific process datasets and recorded the approximation. EcoSpold 1 and EcoSpold 2 produced no approximation warnings in this run.

This is one conversion result to examine, not the main reason for the trial. The broader result is that the same complete Agribalyse source could be exported into three distinct LCA exchange formats, with the outputs and warnings made inspectable.

What still needs testing

The generated files have not yet been re-imported and recalculated across a representative set of external LCA tools. The trial therefore does not yet establish full round-trip equivalence for exchanges, properties, allocations, classifications, parameters, inventories or LCIA results.

Useful next tests include:

1. importing the ILCD, EcoSpold 1 or EcoSpold 2 output into another tool;
2. recording whether the complete file opens and how many datasets are recognized;
3. capturing import warnings or rejected fields;
4. comparing selected activities, exchanges and classifications with the Agribalyse source;
5. recalculating selected inventories and impact results with explicit tolerances.

Reproduce the conversion path

The detailed results, file checks, limits and reusable script are available on the conversion example page.

The measured run used Python to make the checks repeatable, but the exporter is not tied to Python. The same engine export operation is available through:

• the web interface, using the export action for a loaded database;
• the Desktop application, with the database and engine kept locally;
• the command-line interface;
• the HTTP API and pyvolca for scripts and integrations.

For example, the CLI can export one loaded database directly:

volca database export agribalyse-3.2 \
  --format ilcd \
  --out agribalyse-3.2.ilcd.zip

The public Python example can launch a local VoLCA server, load a temporary copy of a database and export one or more requested formats:

uv run convert_database.py \
  --source database.zip \
  --format ilcd ecospold2 \
  --out exports

These entry points use the same engine serializers and format checks. The choice between Web, Desktop, CLI and Python therefore depends on the workflow, not on a different conversion implementation.

Run one bounded import test

You do not need to evaluate VoLCA as a whole. One import attempt in another LCA tool is useful, including an attempt that fails.

Choose one VoLCA-generated ILCD, EcoSpold 1 or EcoSpold 2 file and record:

• target format;
• importing tool and exact version;
• outcome: opened, partially imported or rejected;
• number of datasets recognized, where available;
• warnings, rejected fields or visible differences;
• test date.

For this first round, results can be shared through the VoLCA contact form. Please also indicate whether the result may be published with your name, published anonymously, or kept private.

With contributors’ permission, the next step is an inspectable interoperability record organized by format, tool and version. This will make successful and unsuccessful tests reusable instead of leaving them in private submissions. The evidence will help separate format limitations from exporter defects and define the next round-trip tests.

Data and software

• Source database: Agribalyse 3.2, complete SimaPro CSV export supplied separately.
• Engine used for the measured run: VoLCA 0.9.1.
• Measured targets: ILCD, EcoSpold 1 and EcoSpold 2.
• A reusable Python conversion script is available on the example page.