Agriculturalists contribute less to greenhouse gas emissions

by | Apr 16, 2020 | 5 Ag Stories, News

New analysis shows U.S. farmers and ranchers continue to reduce per-unit greenhouse gas emissions.

American Farm Buruea Federation (AFBF) staff recently analyzed new data from the Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Agriculture. The 2018 emissions data indicates U.S. farmers and ranchers successfully reduced their carbon footprint.

AFBF chief economist John Netwon reports the U.S. agricultural sector discharges less emissions than transportation, electricity generation, and industrial sectors.

?It showed that agriculture continues to be a distant fourth, in terms of our contribution to greenhouse gas emissions. In 2018, we represented less than 10-percent of all emissions in the economy. When you take carn sequestration efforts into consideration, our carbon/environmental footprint is much lower,? Newton said.

AFBF president Zippy Duvall applauds U.S. farmers and ranchers for ?doing more with less? and ?leading the world in agricultural advances.? Newton mirrors Duvall’s comments. He emphasizes the role agricultural advancements play in the climate change solution.

?Our innovative adoption of technology in the Ag space has helped us do more with less. I think we are going to continue to do more with less as we see new technologies deployed into the market. Any conversation around climate change and sustainability should recognize that agriculture is a part of the solution,” Newton said.