Food and energy crops are needed to deliver food security and energy security, respectively, and compete for the same land. Energy crops can provide a low carbon alternative to fossil fuel derived energy and EU legislation has encouraged their use and production. Food production will become ever more important with a growing population with changing dietary demands. Producing energy crops competes with land for the production of food with possible impacts on food prices or food availability. Additionally, changes in land use from food to energy crops and any subsequent indirect land use change by displaced food production will change both green house gas (GHG) emissions and the carbon stored in soils and vegetation.
The session will explore the food-energy-climate nexus as played out through competing demands for land. Experimental and model approaches investigating (a) GHG emissions from food production, (b) GHG emissions from energy crop production, (c) impact of climate change on net primary production and (d) the impact on land use change, food security and the overall GHG balance. Contributors are encouraged to submit their proposed topics for this oral and poster session.