I thought I’d recommend a post that Oil Drum author Ianqui had guest posted at Ezra Klein’s blog. In it, the author covers the main energy requirements of modern agriculture. Some of these I’ve heard before and some, like transportation fuel, are obvious. But I wasn’t aware of the amount of energy used for fertilizer alone.
I do have suspicions about some of the figures. For instance, the studies cited show a vegetarian diet consuming 25% less energy than a meat-inclusive diet, but it’s hardly clear which diets they’re comparing. It’s certainly true that all thing being equal, livestock require far more energy inputs than grains or even vegetables. But all things aren’t necessarily equal: consumers insist on tomatoes out of season, fly in their European cheeses, and balance their local and organic produce movements with a cosmopolitanism that seeks out ingredients from all reaches of the globe. So many other consumer choices may matter as much, or at least nearly as much, as a meat/nonmeat choice.
But I’m wondering what changes to make agriculture more energy-efficient we can institute easily, or without detrimentally affecting productivity. Any ideas?
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