Since the start of the war in Ukraine last February, the cost of food has soared, amplified by soaring fertilizer prices. Yet the companies that produce them are booming.
Posted at 2:00 p.m.
In addition to being geopolitically untenable, this situation perpetuates an unjust and unsustainable agricultural model, susceptible to disruptions from pandemics, global conflicts and climate change. The solution is to shift to low-emission agroecological and organic agriculture that is more resilient and able to meet food needs everywhere on the planet.
Each year, 8 to 10% of natural gas consumption in Canada is used to produce synthetic nitrogen fertilizers. When applied to the soil, these synthetic fertilizers, which are in fact “fossil fertilizers”, release nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas 250 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Thus, approximately one-third of all agricultural emissions in Canada come from the production and use of fertilizers.1.
According to Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) data provided to the Deputy Minister of Agriculture and obtained by Greenpeace, Canada has the highest greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per kilogram of cereals among the top 10 world producers. Our per capita fertilizer emissions are also among the highest in the world.
About 5.5 million tons2 of these fertilizers are produced here every year by numerous transnational corporations that dominate world markets. It’s no surprise that their influential lobby has fought tooth and nail against federal plans to reduce emissions from their products.
As a result, agriculture is the only major sector in Canada whose GHG emissions continue to grow. Despite this, breaking our dependence on high-emitting chemical fertilizers does not seem to be on the agenda of the Canadian federal government, which touts the “efficiency” of these fertilizers and only aims for a 3% reduction in agriculture by 2030.
However, as with fossil fuels, it is good to be more efficient in the use of chemical fertilizers, but only as part of a transition away from them. It is actually possible to reduce fertilizer emissions in two ways.
First, industrial agriculture must disappear. Nearly 30% of the crops produced in Canada are primarily used to feed livestock and 85% of the emissions related to the production of this feed come from fertilizers. Governments should provide generous subsidies to help farmers make the transition to plant protein production, such as lentils and chickpeas which naturally increase nitrogen in the soil.
Secondly, efforts must be put in place to establish real food sovereignty. This requires support for a shift to organic or, even better, agroecological methods, many of which mimic natural systems of nutrient access and have been developed using indigenous knowledge. A study has shown that organic practices can reduce the need for artificial fertilizers while maintaining high yields, opening the door to a profound transition in our agriculture. These results are backed by a substantial body of evidence, including the most recent IPCC report.
Reviewing agricultural models is a necessity in the face of current climate and environmental issues and for this we must encourage diversified farming on a human scale by implementing incentives aimed at promoting multiple productions on the same farm and on the same territory ( agroecology).
For its part, the federal government should support the production of indigenous seeds and subsidize training in agro-ecological and organic agriculture. It should also involve the First Nations in the development of agri-food policies and welcome their knowledge so that better food systems can be built.
On the provincial side, programs encouraging farmers to direct their production towards a model highly dependent on pesticides and synthetic inputs should be abolished, such as ASRA (Assurance stabilization of agricultural income) which compensates farmers for certain crops dependent on these inputs, creating an incentive to use more of them. Also, a guaranteed minimum income in agriculture should be put in place in order to allow more autonomy in terms of their choices and reduce their dependence on exports.
While the fertilizer lobby advances self-serving arguments as to why systemic change is not possible, the reality is that deep reductions are within reach, if we tackle glaring problems like factory farms and harmonize our practices to the principles of agroecology. Solidarity and support for farmers is the way to achieve this.