Abstract
The amount of energy required to produce a commodity or to supply a service varies from one production system to another and consequently giving rise to differing levels of environmental efficiency. Moreover, since energy prices have been continuously increasing over time, this energy amount may be a factor that has economic worth. Biomass production has a variety of end-products such as food, energy, and fiber; thus, taking into account the similarity in end-product of different crops (e.g.: sunflower, peanuts, or soybean for oil) it is possible to evaluate which crops require less energy per functional unit, such as starch, oil, and protein. This information can be used in decision-making about policies for food safety or bioenergy. In this study, 23 crops were evaluated allowing for a comparison in terms of energy embodied per functional unit. Crops were grouped as follows: starch, oil, horticultural, perennial and fiber, to provide for a deeper analysis of alternatives for the groups, and subsidize further studies comparing conventional and alternative production systems such as organic or genetically modified organisms, in terms of energy. The best energy balance observed was whole sugarcane (juice, bagasse and straw) with a surplus of 268 GJ ha−1 yr−1; palm shows the highest energy return on investment with a ratio of approximately 30:1. For carbohydrates and protein production, cassava and soybean, respectively, emerged as the crops offering the greatest energy savings in the production of these functional foods.
Highlights
Since the Industrial Revolution, mankind has become extremely dependent on fossil fuels (Giampietro and Ulgiati, 2005) and after the Green Revolution (1960s) agricultural production stimulated the demand for energy
Biomass production has a variety of end-products such as food, energy, and fiber; taking into account the similarity in end-product of different crops (e.g.: sunflower, peanuts, or soybean for oil) it is possible to evaluate which crops require less energy per functional unit, such as starch, oil, and protein
Energy flow assessment can provide a view of energy performance which shows how it can be improved and estimated by material flow assessment which is an orderly evaluation of the flows and stocks of materials within a defined system (Pimentel and Patzek, 2005; Hall et al, 2009; Romanelli and Milan, 2010a; Romanelli et al, 2012b; Brunner and Rechberger, 2004)
Summary
Since the Industrial Revolution, mankind has become extremely dependent on fossil fuels (Giampietro and Ulgiati, 2005) and after the Green Revolution (1960s) agricultural production stimulated the demand for energy. Current agricultural practices are heavily dependent on fossil energy and machinery (Cruse et al, 2010; Johansson et al, 2012) that seek to maximize yield, but, most of the time ignore the energy required (Pimentel, 1980). Brazil is an important country where it is possible to open up new areas to agriculture, which will result in an increase in energy consumption in this sector (FAO, 2002; Ferreira Filho et al, 2015). The agricultural sector accounts for only 4 % of total energy consumed in Brazil (EPE, 2014), an assessment of energy requirements by Brazilian agriculture is important to an evaluation of its sustainability
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