Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems (Jul 2021)
Expansion of Agriculture in Northern Cold-Climate Regions: A Cross-Sectoral Perspective on Opportunities and Challenges
- Adrian Unc,
- Adrian Unc,
- Adrian Unc,
- Daniel Altdorff,
- Evgeny Abakumov,
- Sina Adl,
- Snorri Baldursson,
- Michel Bechtold,
- Douglas J. Cattani,
- Les G. Firbank,
- Stéphanie Grand,
- María Guðjónsdóttir,
- María Guðjónsdóttir,
- Cynthia Kallenbach,
- Amana J. Kedir,
- Pengfei Li,
- David B. McKenzie,
- Debasmita Misra,
- Hirohiko Nagano,
- Deborah A. Neher,
- Jyrki Niemi,
- Maren Oelbermann,
- Jesper Overgård Lehmann,
- David Parsons,
- Sylvie Quideau,
- Anarmaa Sharkhuu,
- Bożena Smreczak,
- Jaana Sorvali,
- Jeremiah D. Vallotton,
- Joann K. Whalen,
- Erika H. Young,
- Mingchu Zhang,
- Nils Borchard
Affiliations
- Adrian Unc
- School of Science and the Environment, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Corner Brook, NL, Canada
- Adrian Unc
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Adrian Unc
- Environmental Science Program, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NL, Canada
- Daniel Altdorff
- School of Science and the Environment, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Corner Brook, NL, Canada
- Evgeny Abakumov
- Department of Applied Ecology, Saint-Petersburg State University, Saint-Petersburg, Russia
- Sina Adl
- Department of Soil Sciences, College of Agriculture and Bioresources, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
- Snorri Baldursson
- Faculty of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences, Agricultural University of Iceland, Hvanneyri, Iceland
- Michel Bechtold
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Douglas J. Cattani
- Department of Plant Science, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
- Les G. Firbank
- School of Biology, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom
- Stéphanie Grand
- 0Faculty of Geoscience and Environment, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
- María Guðjónsdóttir
- 1Faculty of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Iceland, Reykjavík, Iceland
- María Guðjónsdóttir
- 2Matis ohf., Reykjavík, Iceland
- Cynthia Kallenbach
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Amana J. Kedir
- Environmental Science Program, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NL, Canada
- Pengfei Li
- 3College of Geomatics, Xi'an University of Science and Technology, Xi'an, China
- David B. McKenzie
- 4Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, St John's, NL, Canada
- Debasmita Misra
- 5Department of Mining & Geological Engineering, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, AK, United States
- Hirohiko Nagano
- 6Faculty of Agriculture, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan
- Deborah A. Neher
- 7Department of Plant and Soil Science, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, United States
- Jyrki Niemi
- 8Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), Helsinki, Finland
- Maren Oelbermann
- 9School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada
- Jesper Overgård Lehmann
- 0Department of Agroecology, Aarhus University, Tjele, Denmark
- David Parsons
- 1Department of Agricultural Research for Northern Sweden, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå, Sweden
- Sylvie Quideau
- 2Department of Renewable Resources, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
- Anarmaa Sharkhuu
- 3Department of Biology, School of Arts and Sciences, National University of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
- Bożena Smreczak
- 4Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation, Puławy, Poland
- Jaana Sorvali
- 8Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), Helsinki, Finland
- Jeremiah D. Vallotton
- Environmental Science Program, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NL, Canada
- Joann K. Whalen
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Erika H. Young
- Environmental Science Program, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NL, Canada
- Mingchu Zhang
- 5School of Natural Resources and Extension, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, AK, United States
- Nils Borchard
- 8Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), Helsinki, Finland
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2021.663448
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 5
Abstract
Agriculture in the boreal and Arctic regions is perceived as marginal, low intensity and inadequate to satisfy the needs of local communities, but another perspective is that northern agriculture has untapped potential to increase the local supply of food and even contribute to the global food system. Policies across northern jurisdictions target the expansion and intensification of agriculture, contextualized for the diverse social settings and market foci in the north. However, the rapid pace of climate change means that traditional methods of adapting cropping systems and developing infrastructure and regulations for this region cannot keep up with climate change impacts. Moreover, the anticipated conversion of northern cold-climate natural lands to agriculture risks a loss of up to 76% of the carbon stored in vegetation and soils, leading to further environmental impacts. The sustainable development of northern agriculture requires local solutions supported by locally relevant policies. There is an obvious need for the rapid development of a transdisciplinary, cross-jurisdictional, long-term knowledge development, and dissemination program to best serve food needs and an agricultural economy in the boreal and Arctic regions while minimizing the risks to global climate, northern ecosystems and communities.
Keywords
- boreal agriculture
- Arctic agriculture
- crops and agricultural practices
- northern soils
- policies for agriculture expansion
- land-use conversion
