Hungry cities: how local food self-sufficiency relates to climate change, diets, and urbanisation. (29th August 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Kriewald, Steffen; Pradhan, Prajal; Costa, Luis; Ros, Anselmo García Cantú; Kropp, Juergen P
• Is Part Of: Environmental research letters. Volume 14:Number 9(2019:Sep.)
• Publication Date: 2019-08-29
• Subjects: peri-urban agriculture -- urbanization -- dietary patterns -- agricultural productivity -- food systems -- local food; Environmental sciences -- Periodicals; Human ecology -- Research -- Periodicals; Environmental health -- Periodicals; 333.7
• DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/ab2d56
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1748-9326

Abstract

Abstract: Using a newly developed model approach and combining it with remote sensing, population, and climate data, first insights are provided into how local diets, urbanisation, and climate change relates to local urban food self-sufficiency. In plain terms, by utilizing the global peri-urban (PU) food production potential approximately 1bn urban residents (30% of global urban population) can be locally nourished, whereby further urbanisation is by far the largest pressure factor on PU agriculture, followed by a change of diets, and climate change. A simple global food transport model which optimizes transport and neglects differences in local emission intensities indicates that CO2 emissions related to food transport can be reduced by a factor of 10.