Pulse Brain · Growing Health Evidence Index
Tier 3 — Observational / field trialPeer-reviewed

Agricultural carbon footprint is farm specific: Case study of two organic farms

Cornelius Adewale, John P. Reganold, Stewart S. Higgins, R. Evans, Lynne Carpenter‐Boggs

Journal of Cleaner Production · 2019

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Summary

This 2019 case study compared the carbon footprints of two organic farms to illustrate that carbon accounting outcomes are highly farm-specific rather than generalizable across organic systems. The authors examined how differences in management, soil conditions, and production practices lead to divergent greenhouse gas profiles. The work suggests that meaningful carbon mitigation strategies in organic farming require farm-level assessment rather than blanket assumptions about organic production.

UK applicability

The findings are applicable to UK organic farming contexts, supporting the case for individualised carbon assessments of UK organic holdings rather than sector-wide generalisations. However, differences in UK climate, soil types, and rotation practices may produce different absolute carbon values and require locally contextualised benchmarking.

Key measures

Carbon footprint (likely in kg CO₂-equivalent per unit product or per hectare); greenhouse gas emissions profile; farm management and soil condition variables

Outcomes reported

The study measured and compared greenhouse gas emissions and carbon footprints across two organic farms, demonstrating significant variation in carbon accounting outcomes based on farm-specific management practices, soil conditions, and production methods.

Theme
Climate & resilience
Subject
Climate & greenhouse gas mitigation
Study type
Research
Study design
Case study
Source type
Peer-reviewed study
Status
Published
Geography
United States
System type
Organic systems
DOI
10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.04.253
Catalogue ID
BFmowc29c6-yjy8o6

Topic tags

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