A potential climate change mitigation role for hydroponic fodder in livestock supply chains
Animal agriculture is significant contributor to global greenhouse gases (GHG), and effective strategies that reduce these emissions are critical for supporting climate change mitigation and (broadly) sustainability objectives.
Advancements in indoor hydroponic farming technologies have the potential to serve as such strategies, as they can increase crop yield while using relatively little land. However, although promising, hydroponic farming is a relatively new approach to agriculture, and its potential contributions to climate change objectives are uncertain.
In addition, the development and use of these types of agricultural technologies alone do not comprise a “sustainability solution”, and it is important to identify policies and strategies that can effectively complement the implementation of these technologies to optimize climate change mitigation benefits.
Read this open access paper on the FACETS website.
This research explores the potential that hydroponic systems have for contributing to climate change mitigation objectives when applied to feed crop agriculture, and it was conducted in the context of implementing these technologies through different approaches and policy options.
Using the Canadian provinces of British Columbia (BC) and Alberta as case studies, the research examines both the production of GHG emissions and the carbon sequestration opportunities associated with hydroponically grown sprouted barley fodder, comparing it to that of conventional barley grain fodder.
GHGs associated with energy and transportation emissions were examined, and this was done through multiple scenarios. All scenarios assumed Alberta to be the primary producer of barley grain, but they differed in terms of where sprouted barley is hydroponically grown and fodder is consumed (i.e., BC or Alberta), how hydroponic facilities are distributed within a province (i.e., centralized in agricultural regions or distributed and located near grain storage facilities), and what energy sources are used (i.e., Alberta using either its current fossil fuel-based grid or renewable energy).
Scenarios were also examined for carbon sequestration opportunities, and these explored how land spared from transitioning from conventional barley farming to hydroponic barley could be used for permanent vegetation cover to increase carbon uptake and storage, as well as shifts from tillage to no-tillage farming practices.
The results of the study showed that hydroponic barley was associated with the lowest GHG emissions among the scenarios in which BC farms were the fodder consumers, and the Albertan consumer scenario with distributed hydroponic facilities (i.e., near grain storage facilities) powered by renewable energy resulted in the lowest emissions overall. In contrast, the Albertan consumer scenario with centralized hydroponic systems powered by the current fossil fuel-based electrical grid was the most GHG intensive among all the scenarios.
In terms of carbon sequestration, the scenario that involved transitions from conventional to hydroponic fodder farming resulted in greatest carbon sequestration opportunities, that is, greater than the opportunities associated from shifting from tillage to no-tillage farming practices.
The results of the research indicate that hydroponic farming of fodder could contribute to climate change mitigation objectives if complemented with effective energy and land use policies.
Read the paper — Hydroponic fodder and greenhouse gas emissions: a potential avenue for climate mitigation strategy and policy development by Robert Newell, Lenore Newman, Mathew Dickson, Bill Vanderkooi, Tim Fernback, and Charmaine White.
