What's the Climate Cost of Growing Crops?

Emissions from land used to grow crops for food, animal feed, fiber, fuel and more, known as croplands, are often overlooked. But they are far from insignificant. New maps of crop emissions from a global collaboration of universities and international research institutions, led by Cornell University and Land & Carbon Lab, reveal that in 2020 alone, croplands emitted nearly 5% of global net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused by human activity. That may sound small, but these emissions surpass those from global shipping and are on par with annual GHG emissions from tropical primary forest loss.

Just four crops — rice, maize (corn), wheat and oil palm — account for the majority (67%) of these emissions, even though hundreds of crops are grown worldwide. Emissions from these top-emitting crops come from the large areas of land they occupy and the way that land is managed, including the use of fertilizers, manure, burning leftover crops, and other cultivation techniques.

Clearly, these crops are essential to nourish a rising global population — projected to reach nearly 10 billion people by 2050 — as well as for the rapid increase in animal feed demand and for creating industrial products used in our everyday lives. At the same time, there is an opportunity to shape a more climate-smart, resource-efficient global food system, where farming plays a more significant role in addressing climate change.