Ecosystem services have received considerable attention because of their potential to inform sustainability assessments. However, conventional ecosystem service assessments primarily quantify the benefits provided by ecosystems and generally do not account for the environmental burdens associated with a product's life cycle. Here, we propose the concept of green ecosystem services (GES), an integrated framework that combines ecosystem service assessment with life cycle assessment, to comprehensively evaluate the net ecological value of products. We demonstrate the application of the GES framework using maize production in China from 2010 to 2020 and further examine the relationship between GES and socioeconomic development using a panel regression model. The results indicate that the GES value generated from maize production was $2.29 × 1011 in 2020. Specifically, the ecosystem damage cost, mainly from fertilizer production, was $0.18 × 1011, and the ecosystem service value was $2.47 × 1011, essentially from direct processes. The panel regression model suggests an inverted U-shaped relationship between GES and per capita GDP. On the basis of this nonlinear relationship, we described three development patterns (i.e., ascending, transitional, and declining zones) and reported that they exhibited spatial heterogeneity. These findings suggest that the GES framework provides a product-oriented metric for assessing net ecological value by integrating ecosystem service benefits with life-cycle environmental impacts. Moreover, the relationship between economic development and GES highlights the need for differentiated regional strategies tailored to different stages of socioeconomic development.
