Integrated Food-Energy Systems (IFES):
Generating climate-smart energy for food security Over one and half billion people have no access to electricity. Three billion people – about half of the world’s population - rely on unsustainable biomass-based energy sources, such as firewood and crop or livestock residues, to meet their basic energy needs for cooking and heating. Reducing ’energy poverty’ has been recognized as the ‘missing development goal’. Without access to electricity and sustainable energy sources, communities have no chance to achieve food security and no opportunities for securing productive livelihoods that can lift them out of poverty. Basic services, such as education and health care, cannot be adequately provided. 
For more information, scroll down or click on the links below. The agriculture-energy-climate connection Most of the world’s energy-poor people live in rural areas and rely on agriculture for their livelihoods. For many developing countries seeking greater energy security, agriculture provides the greatest opportunity for sustainable economic development. For this reason, integrating and intensifying food and energy production has the potential to improve food and energy security in rural villages and the national level as well. In addition, developing systems that integrate bioenergy and food production can play a large role in making agricultural production ‘climate-smart’. The renewable energy generated through these systems can reduce the need to burn expensive fossil fuels: a main source of greenhouse gases. Such systems also increase the productivity of land and water resources, easing pressures to clear forested areas and damage other natural landscapes for agriculture or other purposes. In this way, these systems can be an effective approach for mitigating climate change because changes in the way land is used are another important source of greenhouse gas emissions. They can also contribute to climate change adaptation. Farming communities’ that are more energy self-sufficient and that spend less for agricultural inputs are more resilient and better able to cope with change. Top 
What are integrated food-energy systems?Simply put, integrated food-energy systems (IFES) are agricultural systems that produce both food and energy. They vary widely in shape, size and composition. However, they can be broadly categorized into two types. - In the first type, food and biomass for energy are produced on the same land. This is done by cultivating food and energy crops at the same time, as with agroforestry systems, or in sequence, through crop rotations. Either system can be combined with livestock and fish production.
- The second type maximizes the synergies that exist between renewable energy production processes and the processes involved in crop, livestock and fisheries production. These systems make use of a variety of agro-industrial technologies, such as gasification or anaerobic digestion, that recycle or reuse by-products and other residues created at various steps in the production processes. IFES of this second type are known as ‘zero waste’ or ‘cascade’ systems.
In many IFES, several sources of energy, not only biomass, can be incorporated into the system. Depending on the circumstances, the generation of solar, thermal, geothermal, photovoltaic, wind and water energy can be an integral part of the system. IFES can function at various scales and configurations, from small-scale operations managed at the village or household level primarily to meet domestic needs and sustain local livelihoods to large-scale operations designed for industrial activities. Top 
The moment is nowFor centuries, biomass has been the primary energy source for resource-poor farming communities. In recent years, industrialized countries have also become more interested in renewable energy produced from biomass as a way of mitigating climate change. In particular, liquid biofuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel, which can serve as substitutes for fossil fuels in the transportation sector, have received considerable attention. Increased production and use of biofuels has been promoted as a way to curb greenhouse gas emissions, boost rural development and achieve energy independence. However, biofuel development has also generated considerable controversy. Many are concerned that the expansion of biofuel crops may compromise the food security of the rural poor in developing countries and contribute to increased greenhouse gas emissions due to changes in land use. Indeed, evidence indicates that unless biofuel production is properly managed, the promised goals of reduced greenhouse gas emissions and declines in poverty and food insecurity will not be reached. For this reason, it has become crucially important to understand how to integrate agricultural production and the growing bioenergy sector in ways that are ‘climate-smart’, in order to minimise risks and maximise benefits, especially for vulnerable communities in developing countries. Top 
The IFES Programme: Building the knowedge base and providing options for scaling up IFESIntegrating food and energy production is not a new concept. Relatively simple systems that integrate food and energy production, such as biogas, have proven successful on small and large scales. There are many examples of their long-term implementation and uptake. However, for more complex, resource-efficient IFES, including those that involve biofuel development, such examples are rare. To address this situation, the IFES programme assesses different systems for integrating food and energy and identifying factors that hinder the uptake of these systems. Programme findings are intended to inform policy-makers and supporting partners about the importance of IFES for climate-smart agricultural development and outline the options available for ensuring that these systems bring benefits to local smallholder farmers and to the national economy as a whole. Top |
