The Role of Canadian Agriculture in Meeting Increased Global Protein Demand with Low Carbon Emitting Production

James Dyer,Xavier Vergé

doi:10.3390/agronomy5040569

Abstract

Although the demand on agriculture to produce food could double by 2050, changing diets will expand the global demand for protein even faster. Canadian livestock producers will likely expand in response to this market opportunity. Because of the high greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from animal protein production, the portion of this protein demand that can be met by pulse crops must be considered. The protein basis for GHG emission intensity was assessed for 2006 using a multi-commodity GHG emissions inventory model. Because arable land is required for other agricultural products, protein production and GHG emissions were also assessed on the basis of the land use. GHG emissions per unit of protein are one or two orders of magnitude higher for protein from livestock, particularly ruminants, than for protein from pulses. The protein production from pulses was moderately higher per unit of land than the protein from livestock. This difference was greater when soybeans were the only pulse in the comparison. Protein from livestock, especially ruminants, resulted in much higher GHG emissions per unit of land than the protein from pulses. A shift towards more protein from pulses could assure a better global protein supply and reduce GHG emissions associated with that supply.

Highlights

The global demand for protein is rising rapidly
As the global community awakens to the reality that all countries and all sectors must do whatever they can to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions [8], all agricultural products can expect to be evaluated on the basis of their carbon footprints (CF)
The fossil CO2 component of the livestock GHG emissions budget includes the manufacturing of nitrogen fertilizer [20], which accounts for roughly 40% of the fossil CO2 emissions of the fossil energy and CO2 budget of field crops in the livestock crop complex (LCC)

Summary

Introduction

The global demand for protein is rising rapidly. This is largely due to more disposable income in emerging economies and changing dietary preferences in much of the developed world [1].Dire predictions have been made about a global food crisis for 2050, with global population exceeding nine billion and the effect of more extreme weather on farm productivity around the globe [2,3,4,5]. Global food security is exacerbated by inequitable distribution between rich and poor countries [6]. Nowhere is this inequality more apparent than in access to protein, where grains are increasingly being fed to meat animals, while the world’s poorest people struggle with chronic hunger and poor nutrition. Beans and other legumes are a critical source of protein in many parts of the world [14,18]. They are an inexpensive food, high in fiber, calcium and iron

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Conclusion