Michael de Laine

By Michael de Laine, Copenhagen, 16th December 2008

Danish agriculture accounts for 14-16% of the country’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, but the sector can reduce its emissions by as much as 2.7 million tons of CO2 a year as part of the overall cut in Danish GHG emissions by 2020, in accordance with the European Commission’s climate and energy agreement reached in January 2008.

Greenhouse gas emissions from Danish agricultural production accounted for 14% of Denmark’s total GHG emissions in 2006, with the energy consumption in agriculture, forestry and market gardens adding a 2.4%. The energy used in the fisheries sector amounted to 0.7%, while energy devoted to food industry production accounted for 1.8% of GHG emissions. Other large emitters of greenhouse gases in Denmark were the transport sector (19%) and the supply of energy for non-food-production sectors (56.1%).

Whereas greenhouse gases are usually given as carbon dioxide (CO2), the emissions from agriculture are methane and laughing gas, which are 23 and 296 times as powerful as CO2.

Methane derives mainly from the digestion of the animals, especially cattle, but also from liquid manure tanks. The laughing gas arises mainly from the decomposition of nitrogen in the soil and in fertiliser stores.

Denmark’s agricultural sector cut its emissions by 26% between 1990 and 2006, primarily because of a fall in cattle production and the launch of a number of plans to improve the aquatic environment.

A report prepared by the University of Copenhagen’s Institute of Food and Resource Economics lists 15 methods to reduce agricultural GHG emissions, with four being the most relevant: using straw as a fuel in power and heat co-generation plants; using animal manure for bio-gas production; cultivation of willows for bio-energy production; and removing low-lying soil, typically in wet areas, from agricultural production.

These four methods are expected to reduce agricultural GHG emissions by 2.7 million tons of CO2 – or 70% of the effect of all 15 proposed methods.

In addition, there are potential savings in the production and distribution of food and they can be reached through close monitoring of business processes.

Download the report – ‘Landbrug og klima (agriculture and the climate)’ – here.