Analysis of Energy Use and Input Costs for Irrigation in Field Crop Production: A Case Study for the Konya Plain of Turkey

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine the energy use and input costs for irrigation in field crop production of winter wheat, maize, sugar beet, dry bean, potato, and carrot. For this purpose, irrigation data for the production of six field crops were collected through a survey of 72 farms. According to the results, the carrot crop used the highest amount of energy for irrigation with a value of 47,655 MJ/ha, and winter wheat used the least at 13,167 MJ/ha. Energy efficiency of irrigation for carrot, sugar beet, dry bean, potato, maize, and winter wheat were estimated to be 3.19, 6.04, 1.11, 2.69, 6.41, and 3.95, respectively. The most important cost item for irrigation was the diesel energy cost. The farms that used electricity for irrigation were more successful in terms of economic performance. It was concluded that excess water and energy use for the irrigation process should be reduced to increase the efficiency of energy use for the production of field crops in arid and semi-arid areas.