Doru NECULA1,2, Octavia Maria TAMAS-KRUMPE2*, și Brîndușa COVACI1
1 Mountain Economy Center, “CE-MONT”, “Costin C. Kirițescu” NIER, Romanian Academy, Petreni St., no. 49, 725700, Vatra Dornei, Romania
2 University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Cluj-Napoca, Mănăștur St., no. 3-5, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
*Corresponding author: octavia.tamas@usamvcluj.ro
Abstract
Around the world, agriculture is of the greatest importance because it produces food for animals and people. Livestock is the branch that produces milk and meat, which are essential for human consumption. It is followed by the dairy industry, whose products are an important source of nutrients for human nutrition. All these activities are energy-intensive. Cultivation of the land, then harvesting, feeding and caring for animals, milk production, milk transportation and processing are dependent on electricity and the oil industry. These activities are indispensable for food production, but they have a major impact on the environment by increasing the carbon footprint and thus greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. For this review, we have set out to discuss and raise awareness among the general public and those practicing agriculture that the livestock and dairy industries are a major source of GHGs. This is why it is necessary to take measures to mitigate these sources by implementing strategies to reduce and balance them, to find strategies, without giving up these activities, but to make them as profitable as possible. In animal husbandry, the water footprint can be controlled by choosing appropriate feed rations, while in the dairy industry the largest amount of water is represented by wastewater and with a high energy consumption. However, an alternative source of energy at the farm level is the anaerobic digestion of manure and obtaining energy generated by methane and transformed into electricity. Also, by installing solar panels at the farm level and in the processing industry, it would lead to reducing GHG emissions. Climate change brought about by GHGs has led to higher temperatures and a lack of rainfall, which will in time lead to a shortage of the water so necessary for agriculture and the processing industry.
Keywords:
Animal husbandry; dairy; carbon; water; energy; pollution; greenhouse gases