Agroecology Knowledge Hub

Efficiency : innovative agroecological practices produce more using less external resources

Increased resource-use efficiency is an emergent property of agroecological systems that carefully plan and manage diversity to create synergies between different system components. For example, a key efficiency challenge is that less than 50 percent of nitrogen fertilizer added globally to cropland is converted into harvested products and the rest is lost to the environment causing major environmental problems.

Agroecological systems improve the use of natural resources, especially those that are abundant and free, such as solar radiation, atmospheric carbon and nitrogen. By enhancing biological processes and recycling biomass, nutrients and water, producers are able to use fewer external resources, reducing costs and the negative environmental impacts of their use. Ultimately, reducing dependency on external resources empowers producers by increasing their autonomy and resilience to natural or economic shocks.

One way to measure the efficiency of integrated systems is by using Land Equivalent Ratios (LER). LER compares the yields from growing two or more components (e.g. crops, trees, animals) together with yields from growing the same components in monocultures. Integrated agroecological systems frequently demonstrate higher LERs.

Agroecology thus promotes agricultural systems with the necessary biological, socio-economic and institutional diversity and alignment in time and space to support greater efficiency.

Database

The FAO Africa Gender Team is pleased to invite you to this year's virtual International Women's Day celebration, which will be taking place on 9 March, from 10:00-11:30 AM GMT. The virtual celebration will highlight how peasant and indigenous women are actively promoting healthy food systems through agroecology, regenerative approaches...
Senegal - Uganda - Zambia - Zimbabwe
Event
2022
22 March 2022  | JOIN HERE The agroecological approach in agricultural production has become more relevant due to the growing demands of society for access to healthy, healthy and sustainable food, as well as the need to promote sustainable food systems that are resilient to climate change and mitigate the impact on the...
Argentina
Event
2022
19 April 2022  Since its launch in 2018, the Scaling up Agroecology Initiative seeks to mobilize dialogue, cooperation and investment within and beyond the United Nations (UN) system, to bring agroecology to scale and achieve multiple sustainable development goals through sustainable agriculture and food systems. Different UN Agencies are progressively supporting...
India - Mexico - Senegal
Event
2022
20 April - 20 May 2022 | Join the virtual discussion HERE The FAO Family Farming & Agroecology Community of Practice in Africa is implementing a discussion on ''The co-creation, sharing and dissemination of local innovations for healthy soils in Africa'', co-organized by key actors working for the promotion of family...
Event
2022
12 May 2022  The characteristics of the agroecological transition require transforming the way farmers are accompanied in their changes of practices and production systems. Farmer Field Schools (FFS) are relevant participatory mechanisms for this, as they increase farmers' capacity to experiment, produce knowledge and build innovations themselves. However, there is a...
India - Mali - Togo
Event
2022