A new report points to green solutions that ensure the same food production on much less space than today. Danish farmers can produce many more foods on a much smaller area. To the benefit of both the climate and nature. This is the conclusion of a new report from the green think tank Concito. According to the report, the current large agricultural area can be utilized much better. Agriculture, along with forest production, occupies 70 percent of the total Danish area. Agriculture alone accounts for 60 percent. This is largely due to the large Danish production of animal foods, especially pigs and cows, and the feed for them. The massive agricultural areas leave little room for untouched nature and biodiversity. Additionally, the emission of greenhouse gases from agriculture is significant. Agriculture is responsible for around 70 percent of the nutrient leaching to the marine environment, leading to oxygen depletion.
The new report from Concito highlights significant benefits in a thoughtful transition of food production, where the upcoming and expected CO2 tax on agriculture could be the first step. “Agriculture plays a key role because it takes up so much space. A more area-efficient food production will give us flexibility in relation to the many other considerations that require space,” says the report’s author and project manager Tage Duer from Concito. The report points to two possible models. Both models feed at least the same proportion of the global population as now. One is an optimized development of modern Danish agriculture. The other is an almost 100 percent plant-based food industry – without pigs, cows, and chickens. The numbers show that in the plant-based model without animals, significantly more food can be produced on much less space. This creates room for more nature, energy facilities, and a better carbon footprint. “We’re not saying how to get to the goal. But we’re trying to paint a picture of what the benefits will be. Our desire is to present some future scenarios so that politicians and many others can decide which direction they want to go,” says Tage Duer.