{"id":53409,"date":"2023-09-14T01:11:23","date_gmt":"2023-09-14T08:11:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/civileats.com\/?p=53409"},"modified":"2023-11-06T14:22:34","modified_gmt":"2023-11-06T22:22:34","slug":"op-ed-big-ag-touts-its-climate-strengths-while-awash-in-fossil-fuels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/civileats.com\/2023\/09\/14\/op-ed-big-ag-touts-its-climate-strengths-while-awash-in-fossil-fuels\/","title":{"rendered":"Op-ed: Big Ag Touts Its Climate Strengths, While Awash in Fossil&nbsp;Fuels"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/div><div class=\"post-simple post-capital-letter\"><p>Most of America\u2019s farms are dependent on prodigious amounts of fossil fuels at every stage of production. Powerful <a href=\"https:\/\/civileats.com\/2019\/09\/24\/can-big-ag-be-part-of-the-climate-solution\/\">PR firms have worked overtime<\/a> in recent years to craft a narrative that highlight farms\u2019 potential role in mitigating climate change, but the truth is that agriculture <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/abs\/pii\/S0959652613002291\">consumes 6 percent of the world\u2019s fossil fuel energy<\/a>, and the oil and gas industries rely on industrial agriculture for one of its largest and most lucrative markets.<\/p><\/div><div class=\"post-simple\">\n<p>From planting to harvest, farm machinery such as tractors and combines <a href=\"https:\/\/civileats.com\/2021\/06\/30\/the-food-systems-carbon-footprint-has-been-vastly-underestimated\/\">burn diesel fuel<\/a> to churn out the raw materials for our food system. The freight trucks, locomotives, and inland barges that transport bulk harvested commodity crops and livestock significantly add to agriculture\u2019s CO2 emissions. Because farm machinery is often built to last, progress to electrify those vehicles is slow even though it holds huge untapped potential to reduce agriculture\u2019s emissions.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div><div class=\"post-image-caption align-center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/civileats.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/230918-fossil-fuels-big-ag-op-ed-1-stages-of-fossil-fuel-use-in-the-food-system-graphic-Figure1_Oped_Earthjustice_Aug162023_Ag_FossilFuels_Climate-2.jpg\" rel=\"lightbox\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/civileats.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/230918-fossil-fuels-big-ag-op-ed-1-stages-of-fossil-fuel-use-in-the-food-system-graphic-Figure1_Oped_Earthjustice_Aug162023_Ag_FossilFuels_Climate-2.jpg\" alt=\"(1) Agrochemical production consumes fossil fuels to generate pesticides, fertilizers, and other inputs. Approximately 3\u20135 percent of the world\u2019s fossil gas production is used for synthesizing ammonia. (2) On croplands and grazing lands and at industrial farming operations, equipment used to clear and prepare land, produce crops and house, feed and slaughter animals rely on fossil fuel inputs. (3) The use of fossil fuels to produce the foods and beverages consumed by Americans in 2007 accounted for about 14 percent of economywide CO2 emissions from fossil fuels. (4) Transport accounts for about 19% of total food-system emissions. (5) Food preparation and plastic packaging relies on fossil fuels and petrochemicals. (6) Finally, food waste processing can result in additional fossil fuel use.\"><\/a><div class=\"post-caption\"><p>(1) Agrochemical production consumes fossil fuels to generate pesticides, fertilizers, and other inputs. Approximately 3\u20135 percent of the world\u2019s fossil gas production is used for synthesizing ammonia. (2) On croplands and grazing lands and at industrial farming operations, equipment used to clear and prepare land, produce crops and house, feed and slaughter animals rely on fossil fuel inputs. (3) The use of fossil fuels to produce the foods and beverages consumed by Americans in 2007 accounted for about 14 percent of economywide CO2 emissions from fossil fuels. (4) Transport accounts for about 19% of total food-system emissions. (5) Food preparation and plastic packaging relies on fossil fuels and petrochemicals. (6) Finally, food waste processing can result in additional fossil fuel use.  <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"post-simple\">\n<p>On-farm activities like irrigation rigs also require a lot of generated power. At large livestock facilities specifically, the lighting, cooling, heating, and pumping of water and waste consume a huge amount of electricity. Eventually, agriculture\u2019s electrical use could become a <a href=\"https:\/\/civileats.com\/2023\/04\/26\/climate-smart-farm-bill-heat-flooding-resilience-policy-conservation\/\">climate bright spot<\/a> through the widespread adoption of truly renewable sources like wind and solar. But rural America still relies on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.electric.coop\/electric-cooperative-fact-sheet\">electrical co-ops<\/a>, which depend mostly on fossil fuels. (There is some hope for change, though. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rd.usda.gov\/newsroom\/news-release\/usda-seeks-additional-input-how-use-inflation-reduction-act-funding-advance-clean-energy-rural-0\">2022 Inflation Reduction Act<\/a> directed $9.7 billion to electric cooperatives to transition to renewables.)<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-quote\"><p>&#8220;In 2016, a third of America\u2019s 1,500 farming co-ops sold $17 billion in diesel and other petroleum products.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>In addition, pesticides and fertilizers are derived from fossil fuels. American agriculture is awash in a mix of both, as farms use about a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usgs.gov\/centers\/ohio-kentucky-indiana-water-science-center\/science\/pesticides#:~:text=About%201%20billion%20pounds%20of,%2C%20insects%2C%20and%20other%20pests.\">billion pounds<\/a> of pesticides and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ers.usda.gov\/amber-waves\/2004\/february\/us-increasingly-imports-nitrogen-and-potash-fertilizer\/#:~:text=Nitrogen%2C%20phosphate%2C%20and%20potash%20are,sustain%20high%20U.S.%20crop%20yields.\">21 million tons<\/a> of synthetic fertilizer every year. The fossil fuel industry views these as the uses with greatest potential for petrochemical growth. Since 1960, global value of pesticide exports has increased 15,000 percent while synthetic fertilizer use has increased ninefold.<\/p>\n<p>These pesticides and fertilizers are harmful to both human health and the climate.\u00a0For example, chlorpyrifos, <a href=\"https:\/\/earthjustice.org\/features\/organophosphates\/chlorpyrifos\">a\u202fneurotoxic pesticide<\/a>\u202fin the\u202f<a href=\"https:\/\/earthjustice.org\/features\/organophosphate-pesticides-united-states\">organophosphates<\/a>\u202fclass of chemicals that were first developed by the Nazis for chemical warfare, is acutely toxic. Although the EPA has banned the use of chlorpyrifos in food, it is still widely used in U.S. agriculture on cotton, corn used for ethanol, Christmas trees, and golf courses despite the fact that is associated with neurodevelopmental harms in children.<\/p>\n<p>Nitrate fertilizer, which is widely used on conventional farms, is made with huge amounts of methane gas. In fact, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aga.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/Advancing-Americas-Agriculture-The-Value-of-Natural-Gas-to-U.S.-Agriculture-and-Agrochemicals.pdf\">gas industry<\/a>\u202fand\u202fthe <a href=\"https:\/\/alec.org\/article\/agricultures-essential-ingredient-natural-gas\/\">American Legislative Exchange Council<\/a> (a far-right \u201climited government\u201d legislative policy group)\u202fboast that agriculture is dependent on fossil fuel gas. The\u202f<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theenergyofnow.org\/\">gas industry\u202f<\/a>\u202fpoints out that\u202f30 percent of all global energy\u202fis used for food production and distribution, while agriculture consumes almost\u202f15 percent of U.S. commercial and industrial fossil fuel gas.\u202fFertilizer production accounts for about a <a href=\"https:\/\/pubs.er.usgs.gov\/publication\/70192503#:~:text=In%20general%2C%20about%20a%20third,proportion%20of%20total%20energy%20inputs.\">third of the total energy used<\/a> in crop production.<\/p>\n<p>Agriculture\u2019s willful dependence on fossil fuels is not entirely surprising. While it\u2019s important to have a food safety net, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gao.gov\/products\/gao-23-106228\">government subsidized crop insurance<\/a> program and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.drovers.com\/news\/ag-policy\/john-phipps-are-farmers-losing-interest-farm-bill\">regular federal disaster payments<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ewg.org\/research\/midwest-increased-precipitation-climate-change-goes-hand-hand-ballooning-crop-insurance?auHash=7H-MO_RwZFbAb2nK4J-0Sbox8ejOhOsS4NthI0M5Gf8\">insulate producers from risk<\/a> and create few incentives to employ practices that regenerate the soil and hold more moisture and organic matter in the ground in a way that minimizes climate risk. Instead, most producers pour on more (subsidized) fossil fuels.<\/p>\n<p>Although they receive subsidies for using fossil fuels and face an onslaught of climate disasters\u2014from drought to floods to intense heat waves\u2014many commodity farmers are still skeptical of the proven science behind global warming. For instance, an Iowa State University survey found that in 2020 <a href=\"https:\/\/store.extension.iastate.edu\/product\/2020-Summary-Report-Iowa-Farm-and-Rural-Life-Poll\">a scant 18 percent of farmers<\/a> in the agriculture bellwether state believed human activity was mostly responsible for climate change.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-quote\"><p>&#8220;As the climate crisis intensifies, it\u2019s time to see agriculture for what it is: an industry that produces needed goods <em>and<\/em> requires oversight.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Much of farmers\u2019 climate skepticism can be traced to the largest and most powerful agriculture trade group in the country, the American Farm Bureau Federation. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/video\/opinion\/100000008091680\/climate-sustainability-agriculture-lobby.html\">Farm Bureau<\/a> has\u202f<a href=\"https:\/\/insideclimatenews.org\/news\/21122018\/american-farm-bureau-fossil-fuel-nexus-climate-change-denial-science-agriculture-carbon-policy-opposition\/\">long been close allies<\/a>\u202fof the fossil fuel industry and <a href=\"https:\/\/insideclimatenews.org\/news\/24102018\/farm-bureau-climate-change-denial-farmers-crop-insurance-subsidies-drought-future-at-risk\/\">fights<\/a> all climate legislation that might slow fossil fuel use. The Farm Bureau also enjoys considerable financial rewards from fossil fuels.<\/p>\n<p>Farm Bureau Oil Company was formed in 1930 and <a href=\"https:\/\/insideclimatenews.org\/news\/21122018\/american-farm-bureau-fossil-fuel-nexus-climate-change-denial-science-agriculture-carbon-policy-opposition\/\">grew to own<\/a> 1,200 oil wells, a pipeline network, and refineries by the 1960s. In 2016, a third of America\u2019s 1,500 farming co-ops sold $17 billion in diesel and other petroleum products. Closer to agrochemical companies than actual farmers, the Farm Bureau has long promoted policies aimed at codifying an industrial agriculture system dominated by fossil fuel dependent megafarms.<\/p>\n<p>As the climate crisis intensifies, it\u2019s time to see agriculture for what it is: an industry that, like many others, produces needed goods <em>and<\/em> requires oversight. As the first step, we must\u00a0put an end to the <a href=\"https:\/\/digitalcommons.pace.edu\/lawfaculty\/1051\/\">many<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/drexel.edu\/~\/media\/Files\/law\/law%20review\/v10-1\/183%20-%20Weil%20FINAL%202-27.ashx\">exemptions<\/a> in the laws regulating industrial agriculture\u2019s impacts on our air and water.<\/p>\n<p>Legislators and the public recognize that the fossil fuel industry cannot be left to its own devices and they have imposed strict air and water pollution limits. Lawmakers must do the same for industrial agriculture. Moreover, in the 2023 Farm Bill, legislators must support and drive transformative change toward climate-friendly practices and products.<\/p>\n<div class='ctx-module-container ctx_default_placement ctx-clearfix'><\/div><span class=\"ctx-article-root\"><!-- --><\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Most American farms consume massive amounts of oil and gas. As the climate crisis intensifies, lawmakers need to start regulating the industry and holding it accountable for its impact on the air and water.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":468,"featured_media":53428,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4146,4303,4343,3258],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3735],"class_list":["post-53409","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-climate","category-commentary","category-food-policy","category-farm-bill"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.6 (Yoast SEO v25.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Op-ed: Big Ag Touts Its Climate Strengths, While Awash in Fossil Fuels | Civil Eats<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Most American farms consume massive amounts of oil and gas. 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