In the long run, more and more arable land in Europe will become suitable for soybean production. This is what a study published by the Leibniz Center for Agricultural Panorama Research (ZALF) points out in the scientific journal Global Change Biology.

According to the study, this would allow the European Union (EU) to dispense with much of the soy imports from Brazil and the United States in the future. According to the authors, a transition to more resilient crops to the lack of rain and high temperatures would offset the expected yield losses in the old continent, especially in southern Europe. 

"Climate change requires a rethinking of agricultural production in relation to varieties and crops more adapted to heat and drought. Soybeans are an arable crop that thrives in hot conditions and provides nitrogen, an important nutrient for plants that farmers would otherwise have to fertilize," explain Europeans. 

Soybeans are already grown in France, Italy, Serbia, Romania and Austria, often under artificial irrigation. "Expanding soybean cultivation in previously colder regions expands the possibilities for farmers to make their crop rotations more diverse and thus mitigate the risk of climate-related yield losses and increase biodiversity," explains Prof. Claas Nendel, responsible for the study presented.

Oilseed is able to absorb nitrogen directly from the air, so that fertilization with this much-needed nutrient can be dispensed with. This also reduces negative environmental impacts, such as the release of excess fertilizer in groundwater.

"Under warmer conditions, soybeans produce more than previously with soybean varieties adapted to low temperatures in Germany," explains Dr. Moritz Reckling, who conducts research on legume cultivation at ZALF. Simulations show that risks due to cold and humid weather will tend to decrease in the future, with increased drought and thermal stress.

Source: Agrolink