Energy Use In Agriculture Research Articles

Estimate energy, energy balance and economic indices of watered farming Potato Production in North of Iran

Efficient use of energy in agriculture is one of the conditions for sustainable production. The aim of this study was to determine the amount of input-output energy used in watermelon production and to make an economic analysis of watermelon production under watered farming in Guilan province, Iran. In this article, evaluation of energy balance and energy indices under watered farming watermelon in north of Iran (Guilan province) were investigated. Data were collected from 72 farms by used a face to face questionnaire method during 2010 year in Guilan province. By using of consumed data as inputs and total production as output, and their concern equivalent energy, energy balance and energy indices were calculated. Energy efficiency (energy output to input energy ratio) for yield in this study was calculated 1.75; showing the affective use of energy in the agro ecosystems watermelon production. Energy balance efficiency (production energy to consumption energy ratio) for yield in this study was calculated 0.55; showing the affective use of energy in the agro ecosystems watermelon production. Results of economic analysis showed the benefit to cost ratio in the studied farms was calculated to be 1.88. Therefore watermelon production was a cost effective business based on the data of the 2010 season of watermelon production under watered farming in north of Iran.

Energy Inefficiency In Industrial Agriculture: You Are What You Eat

Modern industrial farming technologies have changed substantially in recent decades. In many locations such as Arizona, these industries are highly energy and water-intensive operations. The sustainability of these operations is called into question. The economic, social and climate implications of energy use in agriculture are worth further discussion. Based on the idea of a sustainable energy budget, the production processes of various foods are analyzed which prove to be very energy inefficient. The environmental, ecological and social justice issues of modern industrial agriculture require a reassessment form myriad perspectives: farm subsidies, consumer demand and preferences, engineering technologies, and water policy.

Evaluation green house gases and energy of pumpkin production in north of Iran

Energy has a key role in social-economic development of countries. Efficient use of energy in agriculture is one of the conditions for sustainable production. In this article, evaluation of energy balance and energy indices under dry land farming pumpkin in north of Iran (Guilan province) were investigated. Data were collected from 72 farms by used a face to face questionnaire method during 2011 year in Guilan province. By using of consumed data as inputs and total production as output, and their concern equivalent energy, energy balance and energy indices were calculated. Energy efficiency (energy output to input energy ratio) for seed and fruit in this study were calculated 0.16 and 1.43 respectively; showing the affective use of energy in the agro ecosystems pumpkin production. Energy balance efficiency (production energy to consumption energy ratio) for seed and fruit in this study were calculated 0.09 and 1.54 respectively; showing the affective use of energy in the agro ecosystems pumpkin production.

California Simulation of Evapotranspiration of Applied Water and Agricultural Energy Use in California

The California Simulation of Evapotranspiration of Applied Water (Cal-SIMETAW) model is a new tool developed by the California Department of Water Resources and the University of California, Davis to perform daily soil water balance and determine crop evapotranspiration (ETc), evapotranspiration of applied water (ETaw), and applied water (AW) for use in California water resources planning. ETaw is a seasonal estimate of the water needed to irrigate a crop assuming 100% irrigation efficiency. The model accounts for soils, crop coefficients, rooting depths, seepage, etc. that influence crop water balance. It provides spatial soil and climate information and it uses historical crop and land-use category information to provide seasonal water balance estimates by combinations of detailed analysis unit and county (DAU/County) over California. The result is a large data base of ETc and ETaw that will be used to update information in the new California Water Plan (CWP). The application uses the daily climate data, i.e., maximum (Tx) and minimum (Tn) temperature and precipitation (Pcp), which were derived from monthly USDA-NRCS PRISM data (PRISM Group 2011) and daily US National Climate Data Center (NCDC) climate station data to cover California on a 4 km×4 km change grid spacing. The application uses daily weather data to determine reference evapotranspiration (ETo), using the Hargreaves-Samani (HS) equation (Hargreaves and Samani 1982, 1985). Because the HS equation is based on temperature only, ETo from the HS equation were compared with CIMIS ETo at the same locations using available CIMIS data to determine correction factors to estimate CIMIS ETo from the HS ETo to account for spatial climate differences. Cal-SIMETAW also employs near real-time reference evapotranspiration (ETo) information from Spatial CIMIS, which is a model that combines weather station data and remote sensing to provide a grid of ETo information. A second database containing the available soil water holding capacity and soil depth information for all of California was also developed from the USDA-NRCS SSURGO database. The Cal-SIMETAW program also has the ability to generate daily weather data from monthly mean values for use in studying climate change scenarios and their possible impacts on water demand in the state. The key objective of this project is to improve the accuracy of water use estimates for the California Water Plan (CWP), which provides a comprehensive report on water supply, demand, and management in California. In this paper, we will discuss the model and how it determines ETaw for use in water resources planning.

Integrated food–energy systems for climate-smart agriculture

Food production needs to increase by 70%, mostly through yield increases, to feed the world in 2050. Increases in productivity achieved in the past are attributed in part to the significant use of fossil fuels. Energy use in agriculture is therefore also expected to rise in the future, further contributing to greenhouse emissions. At the same time, more than two-fifths of the world’s population still depends on unsustainably harvested wood energy for cooking and heating. Both types of energy use have detrimental impacts on the climate and natural resources. Continuing on this path is not an option as it will put additional pressure on the already stressed natural resource base and local livelihoods, while climate change is further reducing the resilience of agro-ecosystems and smallholder farmers. Ecosystem approaches that combine both food and energy production, such as agroforestry or integrated crop–livestock–biogas systems, could substantially mitigate these risks while providing both food and energy to rural and urban populations. Information and understanding on how to change course through the implementation of the practices outlined in this paper are urgently needed. Yet the scientific basis of such integrated systems, which is essential to inform decision-makers and to secure policy support, is still relatively scarce. The author therefore argues that new assessment methodologies based on a systems-oriented analysis are needed for analyzing these complex, multidisciplinary and large-scale phenomena.

물질 및 에너지 수지 분석을 통한 시설채소(오이)의 청정에너지 농업 시스템 구축을 위한 기초 연구

Clean energy farming is the agricultural activity to improve an efficiency of agricultural energy use and to replace fossil fuels. This study was carried out to establish the clean energy farming system in the controlled cultivation of vegetable crop (cucumber) adopting the biogas production facility. In order to design the clean energy farming system, mass and energy balance was analyzed between the controlled cultivation system and the biogas production facility. Net yearly heating energy demands (EYHED) of forcing and semi-forcing cultivation types were 48,697 and 13.536 Mcal 10 -1 in the controlled cultivation of vegetable cucumber. To cover these EYHED, the pig slurry of 511 and 142 m 3 10a -1 (biogas volume of 9,482 and 2,636 Nm 3 10a -1 , respectively, as 60% methane content) were needed in forcing and semi-forcing cultivation types. The pig slurry of 511 m 3 10a -1 caused N 1,788, P2O5 511 kg 10a -1 in the forcing cultivation type, and the pig slurry of 142 m 3 10a -1 caused N 497, P2O5 142 kg 10a -1 in the semi-forcing cultivation type. The daily heating energy demand (Ei,DHED) by the time scale analysis showed the minimum Ei,DHED of 7.7 Mcal 10a -1 day -1 , the maximum Ei,DHED of 515.1 Mcal 10a -1 day -1 , and the mean Ei,DHED of 310.2 in the forcing cultivation type. And the minimum Ei,DHED, the maximum Ei,DHED, and the mean Ei,DHED were 5.3, 258.0, and 165.1 Mcal 10a -1 day -1 in the semi-forcing cultivation type, respectively. Input scale of biogas production facility designed from the mean Ei,DHED were 3.3 and 1.7 m 3 day -1 in the forcing and the semi-forcing cultivation type. The maximum Ei,DHED gave the input scale of 5.4 and 2.7 m 3 day -1 in the forcing and the semi-forcing cultivation type.

A proposed methodology for the calculation of direct consumption of fossil fuels and electricity for livestock breeding, and its application to Cyprus

On-farm energy consumption is becoming increasingly important in the context of rising energy costs and concerns over greenhouse gas emissions. For farmers throughout the world, energy inputs represent a major and rapidly increasing cost. In many countries such as Cyprus, however, there is lack of systematic research on energy use in agriculture, which hinders benchmarking end evaluation of approaches and investment decisions for energy improvement. This study established a methodology for the estimation of the direct consumption of fossil fuels and electricity for livestock breeding, excluding transport, for locations where full data sets are not available. This methodology was then used to estimate fossil fuel and electricity consumption for livestock breeding in Cyprus. For 2008, this energy was found to be equivalent to 40.3 GWh that corresponds to 8% of the energy used in agriculture. Differences between the energy consumption per animal in Cyprus and other countries was found to be mainly due to differences in climatic conditions and technologies used in the farms.

Optimization of energy consumption for rose production in Iran

Efficient use of energy in agriculture is one of the conditions for sustainable production. In the present study energy use pattern for rose production in Iran was investigated and a non-parametric data envelopment analysis (DEA) technique was applied to analyze the technical and scale efficiencies of farmers with respect to energy use for crop production. For this purpose, the data were collected by random method from 29 rose production field in the region by using a questionnaire. The results indicated that total input energy, total output energy and energy ratio for rose production were 67.9GJha−1, 11.8GJha−1 and 0.17, respectively. The study has helped to segregate efficient farmers from inefficient ones, identify wasteful uses of energy from different sources by inefficient farmers and to suggest reasonable savings in energy uses from different sources. DEA optimizes the performance measure of each rose production farm. Specifically, the DEA was used to compare the performance of each farm in region of increasing, constant or decreasing return to scale in multiple-inputs situations. The results of DEA application revealed that of the average pure technical, technical and scale efficiencies of farmers were 0.83, 0.68 and 0.79, respectively. By optimization of energy consumption in rose production energy use efficiency was increased to 0.31. Also the results revealed that by adopting the recommendations based on the present study, on an average, about 43.59% of the total input energy could be saved without reducing the rose yield.

Energy use efficiency in greenhouse tomato production in Iran

Efficient use of energy in agriculture is one of the conditions for sustainable production. In the present study energy use pattern for tomato production in Iran was investigated and a non-parametric data envelopment analysis (DEA) technique was applied to analyze the technical and scale efficiencies of farmers with respect to energy use for crop production. The energy use pattern indicated that diesel, electricity and chemical fertilizers are the major energy consuming inputs for tomato production in the region. Moreover, the results of DEA application revealed that of the average pure technical, technical and scale efficiencies of farmers were 0.94, 0.82 and 0.86, respectively. Also the results revealed that by adopting the recommendations based on the present study, on an average, about 25.15% of the total input energy could be saved without reducing the tomato yield.

Improving energy productivity of sunflower production using data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach

Efficient use of energy in agriculture is one of the conditions for sustainable agricultural production. This study applies the data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach to the data of 95 randomly selected farms to investigate the technical and scale efficiencies of farmers with respect to energy use for sunflower production in Golestan province, Iran. The study also helps to identify the wasteful usage and the optimum level of energy from different inputs. According to the results of DEA models, about 36% of farmers were found to be technically efficient and the mean efficiency of sunflower producers was found to be 0.87 and 0.96 under the constant and variable returns to scale assumptions respectively. The optimum energy requirement was calculated as 8448.3 MJ ha⁻¹; accordingly, a potential reduction of 10.8% (1020.3 MJ ha⁻¹) in total energy input could be achieved by raising the performance of farmers to the highest level. Applying a better machinery management technique and conservation tillage methods, application of fertilisers by performance monitoring and utilisation of alternative sources of energy such as compost and chopped residues may be the pathways for improving energy productivity and reducing the environmental footprint.

A co-integration analysis of the price and income elasticities of energy demand in Turkish agriculture

Agriculture has an important role in every country′s development. Particularly, the contribution of agriculture to development and competitiveness is increasing with agricultural productivity growth. Productivity, in turn, is closely associated with direct and indirect use of energy as an input. Therefore, the importance of energy in agriculture cannot be denied as one of the basic inputs to the economic growth process. Following the importance of energy in Turkish agriculture, this study aims to estimate the long- and short-run relationship of energy consumption, agricultural GDP, and energy prices via co-integration and error correction (ECM) analysis. Annual data from 1970 to 2008 for diesel and electricity consumptions are utilized to estimate long-run and short-run elasticities. According to ECM analysis, for the diesel demand model, the long-run income and price elasticities were calculated as 1.47 and −0.38, respectively. For the electricity demand model, income and price elasticities were calculated at 0.19 and −0.72, respectively, in the long run. Briefly, in Turkey, support for energy use in agriculture should be continued in order to ensure sustainability in agriculture, increase competitiveness in international markets, and balance farmers′ income.

Food Security and Fossil Energy Dependence: An International Comparison of the Use of Fossil Energy in Agriculture (1991-2003)

The serious food crisis in 2007 has reinstated the issue of food security. In particular, it evokes an old set of questions associated with the sustainability of an adequate food supply: are we facing a systemic shortage of arable land for food production? How serious is the oil dependence of food security in relation to peak oil (the point in time when the maximum rate of global oil extraction is reached)? To answer these questions one has to study the role of technical inputs in agricultural production, especially those inputs generated from fossil energy (how much fossil energy is used? for which inputs? in relation to which tasks?). This paper provides a synchronic comparison—e.g., comparing the use of technical inputs in 21 countries belonging to different typologies, at a given point in time—and a diachronic comparison, e.g., comparing the use of technical inputs in the same sample of 21 countries, over a time window of 12 years (1991–2003). The results confirm the conclusions of previous studies and include the following: (i) current pattern of inputs use reflects the existence of different typologies of constraints in different typologies of countries. Wealthier countries must have a very high productivity of labor, whereas poor and crowded countries must have a very high productivity of land. Different technical inputs are used for different purposes: irrigation and fertilizers are used to boost yield per hectare; machinery and infrastructures to boost the productivity of labor; and (ii) when looking at the changes over the period of 12 years we see a constant and worrisome trend. The pattern of energy use in agriculture associated with the paradigm of industrial agriculture (High External Input Agriculture) has been simply amplified, by doing more of the same, with only minor adjustments in special countries. For those looking for a major transition toward a different pattern of production more focused on rural development, ecological compatibility and quality food, this is a reason for concern.

Policy approaches to energy and resource use in US agriculture

AbstractImproving energy and resource use in US agriculture begins with the soil. Healthy soils improve air and water quality, increase land productivity, help resist the effects of drought and floods, improve energy efficiency and enhance the ability to mitigate climate change. In 1993, the US Board on Agriculture concluded that national policy should seek to: conserve and enhance soil quality as a fundamental first step to improve the environment; increase the efficiency of nutrient, pesticide and irrigation use in farming systems; increase the resistance of farming systems to erosion and runoff; and make greater use of field and landscape buffer zones, all delivered through farm system management plans. Despite their detailed analysis and thoughtful approach, only a few of their recommendations were implemented. But now, calls from the scientific community to improve resource and energy use in agriculture are becoming more urgent in tone and could help drive policy reform. We review the reasons behind this rising sense of urgency, highlight some of the potential policy drivers along with policy ‘game changers’ and offer policy options. We argue to expand our view of agriculture as a source not only of food, fiber, biofuels and renewable energy but also of other critical ecosystem services, like cleaner water, carbon sequestration and wildlife habitat, and to adjust policies to realize this potential on all agricultural lands. We recommend undertaking a second National Agricultural Land Study as a basis to develop a clear national strategy to help US agriculture meet the challenges it will face in the coming decades. For the short term, we offer incremental policies to improve energy and resource use and, for the long term, we offer a vision of what that national strategy might include once the necessary analyses are completed and consensus is reached.

What It Takes to Make That Meal

Researchers have been taking a close look at just how much energy it takes to produce even seemingly similar foods. The conclusion: Food choices can have a significant impact on energy use in agriculture.

The impacts of direct seeding into mulch on the energy balance of crop production system in the SE of France

In the current global context, fossil energy consumption is a concerning feature of crop production systems. Increasing knowledge about energy use in agriculture is crucial towards reduction of the unsustainable use of limited and costly energy resources and the related greenhouse gas emissions. As part of an effort to evaluate the adaptation of direct seeding into mulch (DSM) in the SE of France, the present study assessed the impacts of DSM on the energy balance as compared with conventional tillage (CT) system. The crop rotation included corn, sorghum, and durum wheat. In this study farm gate approach was employed to compute energy balance. Results showed that DSM required significantly lower energy input for all three crops, while for corn and sorghum the differences in energy output, energy gain, output/input ratio and energy intensity were not significantly different. It means that DSM for corn and sorghum could significantly reduce energy input (up to 18%) while maintaining output. Furthermore DSM decreased 42–50% the consumption of diesel and lubricants compared with CT. These results suggest that, in the term of energy balance, DSM is an interesting alternative to CT system in the SE of France.

On Energy and Agriculture: from Hunting Gathering to Landless Farming

An energy analysis of agricultural practices shows very coherent patterns of evolution from the Neolithic Age up to this century. All technical advances were in fact exploited toward intensification, and the ratio of food output to energy input was held remarkably constant over such a long stretch of time. New agricultural practices in developed countries linked to massive energy “subsidies” from fossil fuels have disrupted the trend, altering substantially that ratio. A more attentive use of energy in agriculture is going to be necessary when the developing countries will adopt these practices. Low-tillage techniques, hormonal and genetic pesticides and herbicides, nitrogen fixing in grains, and other emerging technologies satisfying this constraint are briefly described and assessed in this paper. Using low tech procedures the top agricultural practice is the classical Chinese one where the food to sustain one person is produced in 100 square meters of land with no external support as mechanical energy and chemical fertilizers. It could be the solution to the hunger problems in low tech countries like Africa.

Save production: A bottom-up energy model for Dutch industry and agriculture

A new version of the model Save production simulates the development of energy use in the Dutch industry and agriculture, including combined heat and power generation. The model disaggregates national energy consumption into fuel types, industrial sectors, energy functions and energy technologies. Simulation is based on microeconomic investment behavior. Examples of model application show results on the penetration of combined heat and power in relation to policy instruments such as CO 2 prices, electricity price support and investment subsidies. Policies that discriminate on CO 2 emissions result in a slightly more efficient heat and power generation. Tailored to the Dutch situation, Save production is well equipped to generate outlooks for the Dutch industrial and agricultural energy use, and for analyzing the role of policies in detail. Its main strength lies in the middle term simulation of decision-making on energy saving technologies and analysis of policy effects. Specific precautions are required when the model is used for analysis on the longer-term, for simulating extreme policies or for the analysis of extremely fluctuating energy prices.

Factors underlying the investment decision in energy-saving systems in Dutch horticulture

In the Netherlands the greenhouse sector is a major user of energy. It accounts for 7% of the total national energy use and for 79% of the total energy use in agriculture. In order to sustain this sector on the long term, it is important that its use of energy is lowered. One way of reducing energy use by horticultural producers is investing in energy-saving systems. The purpose of this paper is to provide a better understanding of the investment behavior of firm operators in the adoption of energy-saving systems. Research objectives of the paper are (1) to analyze factors underlying the decision to invest, (2) to explore factors underlying the optimal size of investments. Three investment theories were used to construct an empirical model of investment. Consequently, this model was estimated in a two-stage procedure to analyze the factors influencing the decision of farmers to invest and the level of investments. The paper ends with policy implications.

06/00484 Input-output analysis of energy use in agriculture: Karkacier, O. and Goktolga, G. Energy Conversion and Management, 2005, 46, (9–10), 1513–1521

06/00484 Input-output analysis of energy use in agriculture: Karkacier, O. and Goktolga, G. Energy Conversion and Management, 2005, 46, (9–10), 1513–1521

A regression analysis of the effect of energy use in agriculture

This study investigates the impacts of energy use on productivity of Turkey's agriculture. It reports the results of a regression analysis of the relationship between energy use and agricultural productivity. The study is based on the analysis of the yearbook data for the period 1971–2003. Agricultural productivity was specified as a function of its energy consumption (TOE) and gross additions of fixed assets during the year. Least square (LS) was employed to estimate equation parameters. The data of this study comes from the State Institute of Statistics (SIS) and The Ministry of Energy of Turkey.