Energy Needs in Smallholder Agriculture

Overview

Access to modern energy services and equipment for smallholder farmers could have significant positive impacts on food security, gender empowerment and rural poverty. The publication "Growing Power: Exploring energy needs in smallholder agriculture" by Sarah Best, International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), analyses the ‘productive uses’ of energy. In detail, the author discusses energy needs and impacts in smallholder food systems, as well as potential approaches to meeting those demands.

Productive Use of Energy

While other approaches define productive uses of energy in a rathe broad way, this paper defines productive uses of energy as uses that "directly increase incomes or add value to goods and services such as power for milling machine" (p.10). Nontheless, it acknowledges the importance of energy for other uses such as education or health services.

-> Please also see the article "Productive Use of Electricity" for more information on different definitions of productive use, as well as other articles on the "Productive Use Portal".

Smallholder Energy Needs

Energy needs of smallholders and rural enterprises can be categorized into two main types:

1. energy for transport, and
2. energy for production, processing and commercialisation of goods.

The paper - as well as most of the available literature - focsues on the latter. Other energy inputs such as indirect energy inputs (e.g. fertilisers) and household energy (e.g. for cooking) are not covered by the paper.

The main energy needs are land preparation, irrigation, processing, storage.

Land preparation

Most land is tilled, ploughed and weeded by aninmal and human power in Sub-Saharan Africa (65% human effort, 25% animals, 10% engines).

Weeding in particular is time consuming and physically demanding. At the same time, weeding is critical as more than 30% of crops are averagely lost due to weed infestation.

The use of machines could increase yields substantially i.e. while a farm family using human power can cultivate 1.5 hectares per year, the use of animal power would increase that to 4 hectares and the use of tractor power even to 8.

Irrigation

In Sub-Saharan Africa only 4% of land is irrigated. Irrigation would allo farmers to grow one or more crops throughout the year, decreasing farmers' vulnerability.

There are different technical options for irrigation, for more information see e.g. an article on irrgation methods on Agriwaterpedia.info.

Processing

Key processing activities are drying, milling and pressing. Using machinery saves manual labour and increases efficiency. Drying and cooling of ruit and meat is crucial for preserving food and to meet quality standards. There is potential for applying thermal energy technologies such as solar dryers.

Storage

Improved storage is crucial for reducing post-harvest food losses. This includes refrigeration and requires energy inputs.

-> See also the article "Energy within Food and Agricultural Value Chains" and "Refrigeration: Solar Cooling"

Energy Technologies and Sources

Depending on the level of power needed and the resources availbale locally different energy technologies are required:

• Electrical energy: suitable for powering water pumps, milling machines, fridges
• Mechanical energy: suitable for production and processing e.g. for harvesters or tractors
• Thermal energy: suitable for different value-adding processes e.g. cooking, drying, cooling

The report points out that mechanical and thermal energy are not sufficiently targeted by policymakers and donors.

Download

► Growing Power: Exploring energy needs in smallholder agriculture. IIED, London, Best, S., (2014)

Further Information

• Energy within Food and Agricultural Value Chains
• Utz, V., GIZ, 2011. Modern Energy Services for Modern Agriculture: A Review of Smallholder Farming in Developing Countries
• Powering Agriculture Portal on energypedia
• Productive Use Portal on energypedia