Dear Dr. Adnan Abbas , the interdependence of water, energy and food is of concern. Food production requires water and energy throughout the agrifood sector. Energy production requires water and a substantial amount of biomass which needs to be produced using soils, water and nutrients. About 30 percent of global energy usage can be traced back to the food sector [ FAO, 2011 ]. This includes supply industry, agricultural production, processing, transport, merchandising and consumption. Agricultural primary production alone accounts for 20 percent, along with food processing (including transport) amounting to 40 percent. The agricultural and food sector thus contributes significantly to global energy consumption along the agricultural value chains. Further, Agriculture is currently the number one consumer of water resources, accounting for 70 percent of all freshwater use. Water is required for food production, processing, transport and preparation. Energy production processes use another 15 percent of global freshwater withdrawals [FAO, 2011 ]. Energy, on the other hand, is a basic requirement for the withdrawal / pumping, distribution and treatment of water.

GOOD QUESTION , LET US FIND THE RG COLLEAGUES ADVICE ON THIS IMPORTANT QUESTION

Dear Dr. Adnan Abbas , the interdependence of water, energy and food is of concern. Food production requires water and energy throughout the agrifood sector. Energy production requires water and a substantial amount of biomass which needs to be produced using soils, water and nutrients. About 30 percent of global energy usage can be traced back to the food sector [ FAO, 2011 ]. This includes supply industry, agricultural production, processing, transport, merchandising and consumption. Agricultural primary production alone accounts for 20 percent, along with food processing (including transport) amounting to 40 percent. The agricultural and food sector thus contributes significantly to global energy consumption along the agricultural value chains. Further, Agriculture is currently the number one consumer of water resources, accounting for 70 percent of all freshwater use. Water is required for food production, processing, transport and preparation. Energy production processes use another 15 percent of global freshwater withdrawals [FAO, 2011 ]. Energy, on the other hand, is a basic requirement for the withdrawal / pumping, distribution and treatment of water.

According to Energypediya (https://energypedia.info/wiki/Introducing_the_Energy-Agriculture_Nexus), the Energy Input in Agricultural Value Chains are summerized hereunder.

This unit focuses on agricultural value chains, discusses their indirect and direct energy inputs and explores the energy usage from production to processing, post-harvest and storage. Last but certainly not least, the financing side of alternative energy.

Energy Input in Agricultural Production

Potential for climate change mitigation and hence for decreased GHG emissions lies in every single step of the agricultural value chain with its diverse direct and indirect energy inputs. Energy is used at every stage: from production over processing, post-harvest and storage to distribution and retail.

Direct and indirect energy inputs are equally necessary in agricultural value chains but they occur at different steps. Farms and processing plants apply direct energy at the operational level. It comprises, for instance, product supply and transport energy, with fuel or biofuel being used to bring the produce to the market. Additional energy consumed for production, processing and commercialization of products is categorized as direct energy input, as is energy for irrigation, land preparation and harvesting.

When correctly used, direct energy in irrigation systems has the potential to reduce water and energy consumption at the same time and further increase yield. If conventional energy sources are substituted by wind-powered or solar PV irrigation systems, [[Powering Agriculture: Irrigation|irrigation] can become sustainable. Nevertheless, sustainable irrigation also uses resources. With low-cost easily accessible energy in particular, there is a risk of over-exploitation.

Indirect energy is applied through the use of machinery, pesticides and fertilizers. A closer look at fertilizers, especially nitrogen fertilizers, clearly reveals the amount of energy input. Nitrogen fertilizer accounts for an energy input of 19.4 kWh per unit[6]. Nonetheless, energy-intensive fertilizers have the potential to save indirect energy through advanced engineering and computer-aided technologies. Improving accuracy and timing of applications, with biosensors for soil fertility monitoring and trace gas detection, can significantly reduce fertilizer usage and thus decrease energy inputs.

Energy Input in the Downstream Sector

The downstream sector in agricultural value chains includes processing, post-harvest, storage, cooling, distribution and retail. These activities can easily consume large amounts of energy, so energy efficiency measures and renewables are very important. Tobacco production in Zimbabwe is an example: the (heat) curing process accounts to over 50 percent of the total on-farm energy demand[6]. The use of solar power can replace natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas in this heating process. There are several measures to preserve food. Cooling is one alternative to maintain food quality; however, its carbon footprint is by no means negligible. For some products, the total carbon footprint can amount to 10 percent and that’s only taking their refrigerated storage into account. If electricity inputs, the manufacturing of cooling equipment and lost refrigerants are considered, it is clear that GHG emissions from the refrigeration process are skyrocketing[6].

Energy consumption does not stop with the on-farm food operations and measures to preserve product quality. The processing and packaging part of the agricultural food chains is also a main contributor to overall energy utilization. A retail food product, for instance, needs around 14 kWh/kg to 28 kWh/kg for processing and packaging. Food processing plants in the USA are one example of this immense consumption of energy. The wet-milling of corn accounts for up to 15 percent of total energy used by the food industry. When not applying the best technologies, food processing plants are producing with an energy intensity up to 50 percent higher than necessary. By utilizing thermal and mechanical vapour compression, the milling of wet corn could save up to 15 to 20 percent in its energy-intensive dewatering, drying and evaporation process[6].

Small-scale food processing plants in developing countries often use outdated technologies and, as a result, consume more energy than necessary. The possibilities for improvement are abundant especially in regard to energy efficiency measures. Good maintenance of older processing plants can lead to energy savings of 10 to 20 percent without investing in new capital. By improving combustion efficiency, reusing the heat from exhaust gases and applying high-efficiency motors, energy savings of up to 20 to 30 percent are achievable. With higher capital investment, even higher energy saving can be achieved[6].

Transport is another consumer of energy in agricultural value chains. For instance, when transporting for fresh fruit by air or by road to markets several hundred kilometers away, transport can account for up to 50 to 70 percent of the total carbon footprint. However, only around 1percent of food products are transported by air, so that typically, the energy input for transport is a relatively small share of total energy inputs into an agricultural value chain[6]. While transport is a relevant topic for the Energy-Agriculture Nexus, this course does not further elaborate on this topic but focuses on the value chain steps of primary production, storage and handling, and value added processing (Figure 2).

Financing of Alternative Energy Solutions

Agricultural value chains contain many opportunities for energy efficiency measures and renewables. Investment in these sectors can yield significant savings in energy and reduce GHG emissions. Of course, alternative energy solutions come at a cost. Whether they are applicable is very much dependent on the individual situation and financial background. For instance, lack of access to the energy grid changes the opportunity costs dramatically and thus influences the decision-making process. Cost-benefit analysis and feasibility analysis are valuable to spark a decision.

External costs play a major role in relation to alternative energy solutions. “External costs” means that all costs are included – and that also means the costs to the environment when environment-unfriendly measures are used.

Clean energy solutions aim to increase dairy farm productivity and income, the improvements can play a major role in the livelihoods of smallholders. SunDanzer can be mentioned as one example. Recognizing the need for affordable cold-chain technologies, SunDanzer has developed a small-scale portable cooling system tailored for use in the Kenyan dairy market. Read more [[SunDanzer: Solar-Powered Refrigeration for Kenyan Dairy Farms|here].

Population growth and limited resources

• The world’s human population will reach 9 billion by 2050 – demand for food will grow.
• Rapidly growing demand for resources in a resource limited world defined by planetary boundaries.
• The agri-food sector has to become more efficient to meet the growing demand.
• Around 30 percent of global energy usage can be traced back to the agri-food sector, including supply industry, agricultural production, processing, transport, merchandising and consumption.

Climate change

• Extreme weather events due to climate change impact agricultural production.
• Adaptation measures need to be implemented, such as new technologies and cultivation of new crops.
• Introduction of renewables, optimization of processes and lowering of energy intensity can design productivity growth in a carbon-neutral way.
• Agricultural processing can mitigate climate change by increasing energy efficiency and by applying renewable energy technologies.

Energy inputs

• Direct and indirect energy inputs are needed in agricultural value chains.
• Processing, post-harvest, storage and cooling are energy-intense steps of many agricultural value chains.
• Reduction of energy consumption in processing plants presents high potential for increasing energy efficiency.
• Options for financing alternative energy solutions is very much dependent on the individual context, such as the institutional setting.

Energy Inputs in Agricultural Value Chains (Best, 2014)

It's a probably good area of research. Impotant parameters could be selection of machinery, it's application in agricultural field, energy consumed for the accomplishment of a particular job, energy really utilized for the job, reduction in energy consupmtion, enhancement of it's efficiency, reduction of frictional work, increase in speed, reduction in size of machinery, and many more related to a particular application.

As far as I have seen : Pumps /Motors / hydraulic units for water supply

In the field : https://practicalaction.org/treadle-pumps

Sprinklers / Dripping irrigation

Cleaning and separation : https://www.flottweg.com/product-lines/decanter/

thank you @ Beemnet Mengesha Kassahun @aparna @mahesh and Murad A. A. Almekhlafi for your contribution

Interesting question

these links are useful

www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/.../pdf?md5...1...

https://energypedia.info/.../Introducing_the_Energy-Agriculture_Nex...

regards

Good luck.

Thank you So much for all the RG colleges for the detailed inputs.

Specially Dr. Kumar and Dr. Beemnet.

Thanks