Increasing the share of domestic grain legumes in human diets benefits for cropping and food system sustainability Georg Carlsson SLU, Department of Biosystems and Technology, Alnarp
Legumes contribute to sustainable agriculture: Nutritious feed and food current increase in consumers demand Biological N 2 fixation, to the benefit for the legume itself as well as for the entire agro-ecosystem Diversification of cropping systems, reduced need for pesticides Enhanced soil fertility Reduced use of fossil energy and reduced climate impact
Visions for increased human consumption of grain legumes a case study of Sweden 170 g meat consumed per person and day 70% of agricultural land used for animal feed production Large potential to diversify cropping systems by increasing the cultivation of grain legumes: pea, faba bean, Phaseolus beans, lentil, lupins, soybean Photo: Pamela Konfor
Vision for replacing part of the meat consumption with domestic grain legumes Protein intake from meat/grain legumes (GL) g / person and day 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 legumes chicken pork beef 0 current replace import Calculations based on data in Hallström et al. (2014). Food Policy 47, 81 90.
The scenario requires almost 60 000 ha for increased grain legume cultivation
The scenario requires almost 60 000 ha for increased grain legume cultivation 1200 1000 Swedish agricultural land, 2013 Thousands ha 800 600 400 200 0 Temporary grasslands, forage crops Cereals Yearbook of agricultural statistics (2014) The Board of Agriculture / Statistics Sweden Pastures, meadows Oilseeds Potato, sugar beet Field vegetables, grass seed, flax, willow Grain legumes
New cropping systems Sugar beet Spring Spring barley oilseed rape Sugar beet Spring Faba bean oilseed rape Common bean
Competition for land economic return important for choice of crop Crop Black bean Income Faba bean Income Spring barley Income Income oilseed rape Income 1 700 kg / ha, 8 SEK / kg 7 400 SEK / ha 4 000 kg / ha, 3 SEK / kg 6 800 SEK / ha 6 000 kg / ha, 1.75 SEK / kg 5 900 SEK / ha 8 500 kg / ha, 1.8 SEK / kg 9 500 SEK / ha 3 500 kg / ha, 4 SEK / kg 9 500 SEK / ha Scenario for yield and price 2 500 kg / ha, 8.5 SEK / kg 15 000 SEK / ha 5 000 kg / ha, 3.5 SEK / kg 12 300 SEK / ha 7 000 kg / ha, 2 SEK / kg 9 400 SEK / ha 10 000 kg / ha, 2 SEK / kg 14 200 SEK / ha 4 500 kg / ha, 4.5 SEK / kg 15 800 SEK / ha Estimated costs for seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, machinery and fuel are withdrawn from the calculated incomes. Crop rotation benefits from legumes not included in calculations.
Replacing part of Swedish meat production? 1200 1000 Thousands ha 800 600 400 200 0 Temporary grasslands, forage crops Cereals Yearbook of agricultural statistics (2014) The Board of Agriculture / Statistics Sweden Pastures, meadows Oilseeds Potato, sugar beet Field vegetables, grass seed, flax, willow Grain legumes
Tradeoffs + reduced climate impact - biodiversity loss in abandoned pastures + diversified and economically viable cropping systems - decreased profitability for domestic animal production + reduced competition for agricultural land, improved global food security - indirect land use change for cereal and oilseed crop production, decreased cultivation of perennial forages
Solutions, potential synergies Maintain management of biodiverse meadows and pastures for dairy (and beef) production Develop new multifunctional cropping systems Sugar beet Spring Spring barley oilseed rape Sugar beet Faba bean + spring Perennial legumegrass mixture oilseed rape Common bean Spring barley Cover crops (e.g. clover-grass or oil radish)
Challenges Sufficient diversity of grain legume varieties for different environments? Sufficient development of new varieties? Productivity and yield stability of (re-)introduced grain legumes? Knowledge about symbiotic interactions, ensuring efficient N 2 fixation? Farmers and consumers expectations The calculated replacement in this case corresponds to 52 g dry GL, almost 150 g cooked GL per day
Would you consider faba bean as a side dish with a reduced meat portion? Faba bean taste survey at the lunch restaurant, SLU Alnarp. Konfor P (2013), MSc thesis.
Thank you for your attention!