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Introducing the Energy-Agriculture Nexus
Background
The United Nations projects a world population of 9.7 billion by 2050. As a result, the world will have to feed 2.5 billion more people than today. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that by 2050 current food production needs to rise by 70 percent to satisfy the expanding demand (FAO, 2011). Given the planetary boundaries, especially limited energy and water resources, meeting this target is one of the century’s biggest challenges. At the same time, increased demand for processed food, meat, dairy, and fish adds further pressure to the food supply system, and growing impacts of climate change pose a further constraint (Godfray et al., 2010).
The following article aims to provide you with basic knowledge on the Energy-Agriculture Nexus. You also can check out the introduction video on the Energy-Agriculture Nexus by the Partners of the "Powering Agriculture: An Energy Grand Challenge for Development" (PAEGC) initiative:
The Energy-Agriculture Challenge
The Water-Energy-Food Nexus
The interdependency of water, energy and food is of concern. Food production requires water and energy throughout the agri-food sector. Energy production requires water and a substantial amount of biomass which needs to be produced using soils, water and nutrients. About 30 percent of global energy usage can be traced back to the food sector (FAO, 2011). This includes supply industry, agricultural production, processing, transport, merchandising and consumption. Agricultural primary production alone accounts for 20 percent, along with food processing (including transport), amounting to 40 percent. The agricultural and food sector thus contributes significantly to global energy consumption along the agricultural value chains. Agriculture is currently the number one consumer of water resources, accounting for 70 percent of all freshwater use. Water is required for food production, processing, transport and preparation. Energy production processes use another 15 percent of global freshwater withdrawals (FAO, 2011). Energy, on the other hand, is a basic requirement for the withdrawal / pumping, distribution and treatment of water. The interdependency between the sectors has become more and more evident, as the international debate progresses since the Bonn 2011 nexus conference (FAO, 2014).
Further Reading
