Comparative study of the environmental impact of models of conventional agricultural and agro-ecological agriculture in the agricultural phase of tomato cultivation

Abstract

Background: In this study, the water footprint and the carbon footprint were calculated during the activities of the agricultural phase of tomato cultivation, comparing agro-ecological production systems with conventional production systems. Methods: We examined with six plots in total: 3 agro-ecological plots and 3 conventional plots in la Esperanza and Tabacundo, Pedro Moncayo canton, Ecuador. The water footprint was calculated according to Hoekstra’s method. For the greenhouse gas emissions calculation, due to the production of fertilisers, the activity data was multiplied by the emission factor. Phytosanitary emissions were calculated using the factor given by BioGrace. Results: For the conventional system the most representative footprint is that of blue water with 44.19 litres of water/kg of tomatoes, followed by the green water footprint with 14.42 litres of water/kg of tomato whilst the lowest value is 0.96 litres of water/kg of tomatoes for the grey water footprint. Conclusions: The results obtained show that an agro-ecological system is the most efficient in terms of consumption of resources. Its produce also have an added value for promoting sustainability, responsible consumption and a healthier diet. The generation of eco-labels can encourage the consumption of these by expanding markets for this production system.