Date post: | 24-Apr-2015 |
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Technology |
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The potential for a productive, fossil fuel free agriculture based
on ecosystem services
Johanna BjörklundMan –Technology–Environment
Meal Ecology ForumÖrebro University
To feed an increasing global population and in the same time cope with climate change and ecosystem degradation the large-scale, low-productive and extensive mode of food production in industrial countries needs to be abandoned
Roine Magnusson
• Food production in industrial countries are addicted to fossil fuel when we are rapidly approaching ”Peak oil”
• The Swedish consumption pattern needs an area one third larger than our agricultural area - world population increases!
• The food system contributes to all the planetary boundaries that we are presently overrunning
Non negotiable demands on future food system
• More food with less use of water and without fossil fuels
• Agricultural areas needs to sequestrer carbon• Drastically reduced input of new nitrogen – 25
% of today? – No more N fertilizers in our part of the world
• No more phosphorus to the oceans• Extinction of species need to be halter to at
least 1/10 of today
Decreased meat consumption in high income countries!• Animal husbandry
contributes to all global environmental challenges
• A reduction of meat consumption with 25 -35% would improve our health
• The consumption still increases!
A sustainable climate friendly animal production is possible!
Arla Foods
Locally produced meat from cows fed on roughage and
natural pastures:
– Do not compete with humans– Multifunctional – contributes with
ecosystem services– Maintain biodiversity– Contributes to carbon dioxide sinks– Do not contribute to afforestation– Local context!
Pigs and chicken feed on food left
overs:
• Climate neutral – the production of fodder contributes to 70-80% of their emissions today
• Structural changes need – feedback that are felt!
Integration of animals and crops –… between urban and rural areas – locally
production of food
Recirculation and efficient use
Decreased meat consumption!
• Limited resources – fossil fuels and phosphorous
• Eutrophication, global warming, acidification, stratospheric ozone destruction and ground-level ozone production
• Total addition of ”new N and P” is decisive for the impact.
The cost for the environmental damage caused by the use of N fertilizers in Europe outrun the economic value of their use. (The European Nitrogen Assessment, 2009)
Linear nutrient flows – agricultures largest environmental problem?
All land use need to contribute to carbon sequestration – a
great potential in agriculture!
• Perennial crops• Art rich areas sequester more• Ecological production • Agriculture without ploughing
Future food from perennial systems?International research demonstrate that agroforestry systems are: more productive than monocultures, improve recycling of nutrients, increase biodiversity, sequester carbon dioxide, reduce the need of fossil fuels, increase resilience to climate change.
Is this true in Swedish conditions & what will we eat?
Urban agriculture
Increases in low-energy societies and during economic crises – productive, low resource use, efficient recirculation, biological regulation
Food for a sustainable planet