Future yield growth in Africa mitigates agricultural greenhouse gas emissions
Increased use of nitrogen fertilizer and other agricultural inputs is important for raising crop yields and meeting growing food demand, but risks increasing greenhouse gas emissions. We project net greenhouse gas emissions from crop production in Africa in 2050 under different scenarios of yield gr...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Environmental Research Communications |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/ada8fd |
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| author | Saloni Shah Dan Blaustein-Rejto Linus Blomqvist |
| author_facet | Saloni Shah Dan Blaustein-Rejto Linus Blomqvist |
| author_sort | Saloni Shah |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Increased use of nitrogen fertilizer and other agricultural inputs is important for raising crop yields and meeting growing food demand, but risks increasing greenhouse gas emissions. We project net greenhouse gas emissions from crop production in Africa in 2050 under different scenarios of yield growth. We find that increasing yields would reduce emissions-even if it requires greater use of nitrogen fertilizer, fuel, and pesticides-primarily due to avoided cropland expansion. If Africa more than doubled yields from 2025 levels to meet future food demand while avoiding cropland expansion, an estimated 2.0 gigatons of carbon-dioxide equivalent per year in emissions could be avoided, equivalent to nearly 81% of all Africa’s emissions from agriculture, forestry, and land use in 2021. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-16d450b5d960438a81b418388b112f9e |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2515-7620 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Environmental Research Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-16d450b5d960438a81b418388b112f9e2025-01-21T16:01:49ZengIOP PublishingEnvironmental Research Communications2515-76202025-01-017101502510.1088/2515-7620/ada8fdFuture yield growth in Africa mitigates agricultural greenhouse gas emissionsSaloni Shah0Dan Blaustein-Rejto1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7086-2878Linus Blomqvist2https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5781-6877Independent Researcher, United KingdomThe Breakthrough Institute, United States of AmericaThe Breakthrough Institute, United States of America; University of California Santa Barbara , Bren School of Environmental Science and Management, United States of AmericaIncreased use of nitrogen fertilizer and other agricultural inputs is important for raising crop yields and meeting growing food demand, but risks increasing greenhouse gas emissions. We project net greenhouse gas emissions from crop production in Africa in 2050 under different scenarios of yield growth. We find that increasing yields would reduce emissions-even if it requires greater use of nitrogen fertilizer, fuel, and pesticides-primarily due to avoided cropland expansion. If Africa more than doubled yields from 2025 levels to meet future food demand while avoiding cropland expansion, an estimated 2.0 gigatons of carbon-dioxide equivalent per year in emissions could be avoided, equivalent to nearly 81% of all Africa’s emissions from agriculture, forestry, and land use in 2021.https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/ada8fdgreenhouse gas emissionscrop yieldsintensificationland-use change |
| spellingShingle | Saloni Shah Dan Blaustein-Rejto Linus Blomqvist Future yield growth in Africa mitigates agricultural greenhouse gas emissions Environmental Research Communications greenhouse gas emissions crop yields intensification land-use change |
| title | Future yield growth in Africa mitigates agricultural greenhouse gas emissions |
| title_full | Future yield growth in Africa mitigates agricultural greenhouse gas emissions |
| title_fullStr | Future yield growth in Africa mitigates agricultural greenhouse gas emissions |
| title_full_unstemmed | Future yield growth in Africa mitigates agricultural greenhouse gas emissions |
| title_short | Future yield growth in Africa mitigates agricultural greenhouse gas emissions |
| title_sort | future yield growth in africa mitigates agricultural greenhouse gas emissions |
| topic | greenhouse gas emissions crop yields intensification land-use change |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/ada8fd |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT salonishah futureyieldgrowthinafricamitigatesagriculturalgreenhousegasemissions AT danblausteinrejto futureyieldgrowthinafricamitigatesagriculturalgreenhousegasemissions AT linusblomqvist futureyieldgrowthinafricamitigatesagriculturalgreenhousegasemissions |