The Role Agriculture Technology Can Play to Mitigate Global Warming While Feeding the Planet

When Katie Brenneman told me she wanted to write about the role agriculture plays in contributing to global warming, I suggested we collaborate on an article. She agreed.

In Canada, agriculture contributes 10% of the entire country’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions amounting to 93 Megatons annually. This number isn’t expected to fall as the world population and food demand continue to grow. As a primary food exporter, Canada will play a key role in feeding the planet. Yet for humanity to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, the agriculture sector in Canada and elsewhere has to play its part.

What follows describes just how Katie and I see the way the agricultural sector can manage the transition to a net-zero agricultural future.

What technologies are available to farmers today to reduce GHG emissions? What practices can be implemented for them to help in capturing and sequestering emissions? And what incentives are in place for farmers to adopt new technologies and techniques to ensure GHG emissions in the sector decline?

Climate change is impacting agriculture across the globe. Droughts, hurricanes, and other extreme weather events appear to be on the increase both in frequency and scale putting global food production at risk.

Farms heavy reliance on fossil fuels makes the sector a significant contributor to GHG-causing global warming. A switch to 100% electrification for all farm equipment would begin to reduce the sector’s carbon footprint. Other known agricultural practices such as soil and woodlot carbon sequestration can be done without much disruption. These three actions alone would begin to bend the GHG emissions curve downward.

Why are these initial changes needed? Because farms produce a lot of GHGs.

Farmers for Climate Solutions (FCS), a Canadian farm organization is acting on climate change. Wastenot Farms, a member of FCS, as an example has installed vermicomposting biorefinery technology with earthworms changing organic waste into nutrient-rich fertilizer. But what works in Canada to mitigate climate change may not be suitable in other countries. Farmers, therefore, need to consider local solutions adapted to their climate conditions and ecosystems.

Traditionally, farmers earn their incomes from what they produce, not from what they don’t. In this case, we are talking about not producing GHGs. Industrial emitters can earn carbon credits for reducing emissions per unit of production. Shouldn’t farmers be rewarded similarly?

Rewarding Farmers For Implementing Mitigation Practices

Farmers are not compensated for implementing methodology and process improvements. But maybe they should for agriculture to play a more significant role in mitigating climate change. Why? Because there is a significant cost involved in changing farming practices.

FCS is advocating that policymakers recognize and address this unfunded need. If it were the oil and gas industry, tax credits and subsidies would be offered. But not so much with agriculture. Evan Fraser, Director of The Arrell Food Institute at the University of Guelph in Ontario in a recent Globe and Mail article reinforces this point stating, “We will never achieve a green economy if we don’t have an economic system that reflects the environmental cost, or at least accounts for the environmental costs of our production.”

A new report produced by the Royal Bank of Canada, BCG Centre for Canada’s Future and Arrell Food Institute, notes “The world needs another green revolution.” Previous green revolutions to dramatically increase crop yields are today contributing to global warming as well as adding dangerous residual chemicals to the environment. The revolution this report is talking about is one of producing enough food for the world through sustainable practices that farmers can implement and remain profitable.

At COP27 in Egypt, agriculture is part of the climate change discussion. Extreme weather events have put more people at risk of food scarcity. Currently, the United Nations reports that 193 million people are facing famine. Add to this the COVID-19 pandemic and its disruption of world trade, the Russia-Ukraine war that has constricted food exports, and the spike in food prices globally, and we have a recipe for a disaster. The populations most at risk are those living in the Global South, in particular, the people in Africa and the Middle East.

The Royal Bank report is focused on Canada and provides potential solutions that could reduce GHGs by up to 40% using new agricultural technologies and alternative management processes. But for farmers to adopt these, governments need to create both incentives and infrastructure for widespread adoption.

Practices like regenerative agriculture, still in need of regulatory standards and a legal definition, can reduce GHG emissions in Canada by 35 megatons annually. But regenerative agriculture requires governments to create policies and support farmers as they implement these new practices which can take up to four years to recoup costs, and six years to turn a profit.

What are some other agricultural technologies and practices that farmers can implement to reduce GHGs?

1. Agrivoltaic Growing

Agrivoltaic farming uses solar panels to grow plants. Research shows that some crops, such as broccoli, thrive with this technology. Crops are planted below the panels, protecting them from direct sunlight. The crops produced are a more appealing darker shade of green and taste the same as broccoli grown conventionally. At the same time, the land is used for a double purpose, solar renewable energy and crop production. 

2. Gene Editing for Sustainability

What was once only possible in laboratories is now coming to farmers’ fields. Scientists have genetically modified food plants to make them smart, to make them drought resistant, and capable of warding off infestations and insect pests. Bioengineered root systems make it possible for plants to find water better, an important advantage in areas where freshwater scarcity exists. 

3. Bee Vectoring

This technique uses bees’ natural pollination habits to spread a natural fungus that protects crops from pests and diseases.

4. Laser Scarecrows 

This technology uses light that does no harm to humans but keeps birds away from crops. It can reduce farm bird populations by 70 to 90%. It doesn’t damage or kill birds. It just keeps them away from crops.

5. Minichromosome Technology

Many countries prohibit gene modification pertaining to anything humans consume. In response, scientists have developed an alternative minichromosome technology that can enhance plant traits without altering their genetic structure. It is a faster path to new crop strains than traditional selective breeding.  

6. Precision Farming

The Internet of Things (IoT) and the development of inexpensive small and portable sensor technology are combining to create “smart farms.” Farmers who implement precision farming have become computer and data wizards. They use 5G networks, multi-access edge computing, and cloud access for large-scale farming ventures to optimize efficiency and operations. Stable, secure systems that function in real-time and are available at affordable prices appeal to farmers, offering cutting-edge solutions to protect their crops while reducing their carbon footprint.

The Race Against Time

Agriculture is in a multi-faceted race. It is a race against time. It is a race against population growth. It is a race against diminishing resources and capacity. It is a race against natural enemies that destroy crops. It has always been a race against the weather. But now, more than ever, climate change is driving the race to find solutions to ensure farmers can feed the world without contributing to environmental degradation now and into the future.