When smaller is better: Sask. agriculture’s shrinking carbon footprint
Perhaps it was a surprise to some, but among Saskatchewan’s producers it might’ve been one of the worst-kept secrets in agriculture.
The Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS) at the University of Saskatchewan recently published the results of a two-part study commissioned in 2022 on the carbon “footprint” from the production of five Canadian field crops: canola, non-durum wheat, field peas, durum wheat and lentils. It compared these footprints, including supply chain emissions, to a number of globally competitive regions such as Australia, France, Germany, Italy and the United States that export the same products. The conclusion? It turns out that Canadian producers, particularly in Saskatchewan and Western Canada, are growing crops with the lowest greenhouse gas emissions or carbon dioxide equivalents among these competitive jurisdictions.
At the study’s official release in January, Alanna Koch offered a double perspective: not only is she the Board Chair for GIFS, she’s also a producer herself who farms near Edenwold and has some personal insight into the actual work which is driving emissions down.
“It makes me very proud, and really pleased, that the research proves what we knew already—that we’re putting sustainable practices into our operations,” Koch said. “We make annual investments in everything we do,
whether it’s inputs, innovation or equipment improvements, to ensure that we do have the most sustainable food production in the world. Now we’ve got something to prove it, and it allows us to tell our story better than ever.”
Specifically, Saskatchewan’s carbon footprint to produce a single tonne of canola is 67 per cent lower than the global weighted average. Canadian growers, led by Saskatchewan farmers, are also the most sustainable producers of non-durum wheat.
The GIFS carbon life cycle analysis additionally showed that no- and minimal-till farming—a common practice across Saskatchewan, representing 95 per cent of land seeded to annual crops—and reduced fertilizer applications in field peas generate a carbon footprint more than 95 per cent lower than any other region studied. For lentils, it’s 130 per cent lower—a product of high levels of soil carbon that exceed emissions associated with growing the nitrogen-fixing pulse crop.
As one of the world’s leading sources of key agricultural commodities, Saskatchewan has a special appreciation for the export markets which are consequently vital to its economy and, even more so, to its farmers. The province has set records for its agri-food exports over the past four years, reaching $20.2 billion for 2023, and the GIFS study has provided some additional solid footing for the efforts of the province’s businesses and trade organizations to further promote those commodities and related products internationally.
They now have something new and unique to say, Koch pointed out—and those markets are paying closer attention than you might think.
“This is really great information to share with the people who count on the food that we provide… it’s not only plentiful, nutritious, safe and affordable, it’s also the most sustainable,” she said. “When customers in the countries that we sell it to are worrying about the carbon footprint of the food they’re eating, now they know it’s the best they can buy. It helps sell a product that I grow.”