Almonds Contribute Little To Carbon Emissions
August 25, 2015 Almonds have gotten some negative press lately, with media outlets reporting on the crop’s water usage as California continues to be plagued by drought.
However, researchers from the University of California (UC)-Davis and UC Agriculture and Natural Resources have discovered that almonds actually have a surprisingly small carbon footprint compared to other nutrient-rich crops.
American Fruit Grower® and Western Fruit Grower™ magazines caught up with Alissa Kendall, an associate professor in the UC-Davis Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, who worked on the research, to learn about some of the key findings.
Q: Tell us about your almond/carbon emissions research. Why you decided to conduct it?
Kendall: In about 2008 my co-author, Sonja Brodt, and I began collaborating on life cycle greenhouse gas assessment for some key California food products, such as rice and tomatoes, after Sonja convened a Food LCA (life cycle assessment) workshop at the University of California-Davis, bringing leaders in the field from around the world. It was around this time that the Almond Board expressed interest in funding research on life cycle energy and greenhouse gas assessment of California almond production, so we submitted a proposal and began research in 2010.
We were excited to undertake research on a California crop that provides 80% of the world’s commercially traded market. We were excited also by the prospect of providing research of significant interest to almond growers and the public.
A key goal of this research is to identify grower practices that reduce CO2e emissions, and such practices could potentially lead to the development of offsets for growers that implement them. In addition, people are increasingly thinking more about the food that they eat and, in many cases, they have more choices. Those choices include taste, nutrition, curiosity/novelty and, increasingly, the environment. Our research provides additional knowledge for interested consumers and policymakers about the environmental impacts of food choices.
We calculate the life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy, often referred to as the “carbon footprint” and “energy footprint” of almond production in California. Carbon footprints are typically calculated in units of carbon dioxide-equivalent (CO2e) emissions. When you hear terms like “carbon footprint” or “carbon offset,” carbon is just shorthand for CO2e.
Our research shows that 1 kilogram of California almonds typically produces less than 1 kilogram of CO2-equivalent emissions, 0.92 kg to be precise, which is lower than most other nutrient- and energy-dense foods. These results include the utilization of almond co-products — orchard biomass (like removed trees and prunings), hulls, and shells, which are used for renewable power generation and dairy feed.
As for the timing and direction of this research, we were fortunate to immediately hire a graduate student, Elias Marvinney (PhD student in Horticulture and Agronomy), who helped complete the interdisciplinary team we needed to conduct the research.
Q: What were some of the most interesting findings?
Kendall: Perhaps the most interesting finding was the important role that co-products from almond production play. The almond production system, including co-products, results in 1.63 kg of CO2e per kg of almond kernel (or the part of the almond for human consumption). When you separate out the carbon footprint value of the co-products from that number, the result is 0.92 kg CO2e per kilogram almond. That means that co-products are an important reason for almonds’ good carbon performance. In addition, the co-products are valuable to the economy, as bioenergy fuels and as feed for livestock.
Q: Was there anything that really surprised you or stood out?
Kendall: I think our graduate student, Elias, has really summarized our greatest surprise: “Under ideal circumstances, which are feasible but not in place today, California almonds could become carbon-neutral or even carbon-negative, largely through the improved utilization of orchard biomass.”
Q: What are some of the key takeaways from the research?
Kendall: For consumers, perhaps a good takeaway is that based on energy and carbon footprints, almonds perform well relative to other nutrient- and energy-dense foods and, while energy and carbon footprints are typically reported per kilogram of a product, it behooves consumers to think about the environmental performance in terms of serving size, nutrients or, more broadly, the value of a particular food in their diet.
In addition, there are often trade-offs among different environmental impacts, including water, carbon, energy, nutrients in the environment, etc., so environmental decisions should, when possible, consider a multitude of environmental impacts.
Additional information is available in the Journal of Industrial Ecology.
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