Reducing greenhouse gases
The Danish agriculture and food industry has long been focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Since 1990 Danish agriculture has reduced its emissions by 26 %. Compared to other industries, agriculture, along with other types of farming and fisheries, has overall delivered the highest reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
In 2007, 18 % of Danish greenhouse gas emissions derived from agriculture. In December 2008 the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries published an analysis of the reduction potential for agriculture towards 2020. The analysis shows that agriculture has a reduction potential of 32 % in 2020 if all measures are incorporated, including the production of bioenergy. If cost efficiency is considered, however, the reduction potential drops to 15 %.
The utilization of feed by livestock is a key parameter when considering the emission of greenhouse gases. On a global scale livestock production in Denmark ranks among the most efficient when it comes to feed utilization, making Danish livestock among the most climate-friendly.
The climate impact of the farming and food industry is highest in primary production. In comparison, life cycle assessments show that processing and transporting food products to retail outlets only constitutes a modest share of the combined impact on the climate.
Food-producing enterprises have also made targeted efforts to reduce the impact of food products on the environment and climate, for instance through changes to and optimization of production methods. Food processing requires a considerable amount of energy, but the current energy consumption in slaughterhouses only constitutes some five percent of the total CO2 emission per produced kilo of pork.
The reason for this is that since the 1990s, food producing enterprises have been pioneers in terms of reducing electricity consumption through new electricity saving technology. This has been possible despite increasing demands for food security, and as enterprises have automated production processes to improve the working environment.
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