Washington : US wheat’s environmental footprint improving
A life cycle analysis by Texas A&M and Colorado State University reveals significant environmental improvements in US wheat farming from 1978 to 2018. Greenhouse gas emissions fell 33%, energy use dropped 57%, water use declined 46%, and land use decreased 45%. The study highlights precision farming and conservation tillage as key sustainability drivers.
WASHINGTON — A comprehensive life cycle analysis (LCA) of wheat shows that farmers have dramatically reduced greenhouse gas emissions, energy use, water use and land use, and soil erosion on a per bushel basis, according to US Wheat Associates, the National Association of Wheat Growers and the National Wheat Foundation.
The study was conducted by a team of researchers from Texas A&M University AgriLife Research and Colorado State University’s AgNext Institute. The LCA measured environmental changes from raw inputs through delivered grain, analyzing local production practices at 110 archetype farms across primary US wheat growing regions between 1978 and 2018.
Key findings included a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 33% due to more prescriptive use of fertilizers and precision input application. Energy use is down 57% due to improved fuel efficiency and reduced tillage.
Water use is down 46% with higher yield per water unit and reduced irrigation, the study said, while land use is down 45% through multiple production improvements and lower planted area. Soil erosion is down 60% due to reduced tillage and other production improvements.
“Other studies have shown improvement in wheat’s environmental footprint but did not take the full diversity of a crop grown across the United States into account,” said Dalton Henry, vice president of policy for US Wheat. “Now, the results of this LCA set a more accurate baseline of information that we can share with customers here at home and overseas.”
In 2024, Derek Sawyer, a farmer from Kansas, traveled with other wheat growers to South America to promote US wheat exports.
“Several of the customers we met asked for specific facts about how we produce our wheat,” Sawyer said. “We produce a food ingredient so the results of this study will be a great way to build confidence that our wheat is produced sustainably with less impact on the environment.”
The research team created 110 “archetype farms” across representative wheat-producing counties and collected data on both retrospective and modern practices in each county over time. To reach study conclusions, the team analyzed a massive amount of data using a widely accepted Agricultural Policy Environmental Extender (APEX1) model and “openLCA” life cycle assessment software.
The LCA results encompass all US wheat farms, accounting for different production types, rotations, yield potential, and wheat classes. The study also provides additional details about what is behind the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in wheat production.
“Most of the reduction resulted from fewer nitrogen fertilizer emissions from fields and reduced emissions associated with diesel fuel,” Henry said. “In addition, wheat is produced today with more precise and prescriptive fertilizer and crop protection application with more than 70% produced in conservation tillage systems.”
Henry said the LCA results represent all wheat production across the United States but cautions that the results cannot be accurately compared to production in another country nor directly compared against other crops.
The sponsors are sharing the results of this first-ever US wheat life cycle analysis with the global grain trade in the spirit of transparency about how this high-quality food ingredient is grown. “With this important study, we invite customers and stakeholders to join us to continue measuring and sharing the positive sustainability trends in US production,” Henry said.
To read more about Wheat News continue reading Agriinsite.com
Source : Baking Business
