Resource use and GHG emissions of eight tropical fruit species cultivated in Colombia

Abstract

-Introduction. The cultivation of high-value fruit species is a profitable agricultural activity in many tropical countries; however, intensive fruit cultivation may depend on high amounts of external inputs. The objective of our study was to quantify and compare the resource use during the cultivation of eight tropical fruit species (Rubus glaucus, Solanum quitoense, Passiflora edulis, Cyphomandra betacea, Physalis peruviana, Ananas comosus, Persea americana and Mangifera indica) commonly cultivated in Colombia. It further aimed to identify greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the selected production systems and to highlight the potential to contribute to climate change mitigation efforts. Materials and methods. The analysis was based on data from agricultural databases and applied a life-cycle assessment with energy use and GHG emissions as impact categories. Furthermore, economic indicators were taken into account with the aim of integrating the environmental and economic goals of production systems. Results and discussion. Among the eight fruit species studied, mango (Mangifera indica) was found to have the lowest and tree tomato (Cyphomandra betacea) the highest emission profile. The variability in resource use among growers of the same species was high, indicating the need to improve management abilities at the farm level. Mineral fertilizer production was the highest contributor to GHG emissions. GHG-and energy-efficient management alternatives would have a high potential to reduce the carbon footprint of fruit cultivation. Colombia

Evidencing the importance of the functional unit in comparative life cycle assessment of organic berry crops

“…In Ocati, this value increased to 6 kg CO 2 eq per kg in convectional orchards, mainly due to transportation. For Colombian organic crops (Frohmann et al 2015 ; Graefe et al 2013 ; Perez 2012 ), CFs between 4.76 and 7.11 kg CO 2 eq per kg have been reported, values considerably higher than the CF obtained in this work for the Spanish organic gooseberry crop. This is even more noteworthy if we take into account that the yearly productivity in the cape gooseberry crop here analysed was 1600 kg/ha, much lower than productivities above 10,000 kg/ha reported in Colombia.…”

“…per kg of fruit. Different authors (Frohmann et al 2015 ; Graefe et al 2013 ; Perez 2012 ) have carried out diverse studies on calculating the CF of cape gooseberry production in various regions of Colombia. In Novacampo, a value of 5.20 kg CO 2 eq per kg of fruit was obtained, being consumption of fertilisers and packaging the most impacting subsystems.…”

Recycling Agricultural Wastes and By-products in Organic Farming: Biofertilizer Production, Yield Performance and Carbon Footprint Analysis

“…The carbon balance (CB), the difference between total carbon output and total carbon input, and the carbon efficiency (CE) of the different cropping systems were calculated according to Lal [49]:…”

Environmental Life Cycle Analysis of Açaí (Euterpe oleracea) Powders Obtained via Two Drying Methods

“…This value is lower than those published for orange crop (1.42 kg of CO 2 eq/kg of orange [19], coconut fruit (2.4-6, kg of CO 2 eq/kg of coconut), and peanuts (1.8-3 kg of CO 2 eq/kg of peanuts) [27]. For the cultivation of lulo, pineapple, and avocado, the carbon footprint ranges between 1.7 to 2.4 kg of CO 2 eq per kilogram of fruit [28]. On the other hand, Barrera-Ramírez et al [29] reported 3.18, 0.042, and 1.3 kg of CO 2 eq for 1 kg of coffee, sugar cane, and cocoa, respectively, grown in Colombia.…”