Measuring carbon footprints of major crops in China: spatial distribution features and carbon burdens from both production and consumption perspectives
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Due to imbalanced economic development and agricultural structure, agricultural goods and their embodied carbon emissions present significant disparities in different Chinese provinces. This study constructs a sectoral multi-regional input–output (MRIO) model to account for agricultural carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂e) emissions from both production and consumption-based perspectives. This model integrates crop-specific emission factors for six major crops across 31 Chinese provinces. The results show that production-based emissions are mainly concentrated in Heilongjiang (47.7 Tg CO₂e), Henan (49.57 Tg CO₂e), and Hunan (44.39 Tg CO₂e), while consumption-based emissions are mainly concentrated in Guangdong (57.84 Tg CO₂e), Shanghai (34.12 Tg CO₂e), and Beijing (17.97 Tg CO₂e). From a crop type perspective, Henan, Jiangsu, Shandong, and Hebei contributed 64.76% of the total wheat production emission, while Heilongjiang alone accounted for approximately 33.6% of the total soybean production emission. Both Guangdong (12.06 Tg CO₂e) and Shanghai (12.71 Tg CO₂e) heavily relied on major crop producing regions, while Jiangsu had a limited value-added outflow, even though with a net carbon outflow of 9.98 Tg CO₂e. These findings provide valuable insights on preparing region-specific agricultural carbon mitigation strategies.
Source: Carbon Neutrality
Authors: Yifan Wu, Meng Li, Jingyu Liu, Yong Geng
Institutions: Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Kashi University
Language: English
Subfield: Environmental Engineering
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDGs: Climate action, Zero hunger
Open Access status: diamond
Awards: G1221725670, G1339864048
OpenAlex ID: W7164994456