The shadow of tropical agriculture: Energy transition of Colombian trade-driven agriculture in the 20th century

A. Urrego-Mesa, J. Infante-Amate and E. Tello

Ecological Economics, 2025, vol. 231, issue C

Abstract: Agrarian transformations in tropical regions, driven by fossil-fuel inputs and export-oriented specialization, have caused significant ecological and climatic challenges. Assessing the historical and current patterns of these systems is essential for understanding global biomass production dynamics and addressing their impacts. This study employs long-term agroecological energy analysis (AEA) to examine the efficiency and sustainability of biomass production during the transition from traditional-organic to intensive-conventional systems. While AEA has primarily focused on temperate agriculture in developed regions, this study presents a case of tropical export-oriented farming, analyzing the socio-ecological transition of Colombian agriculture from 1915 to 2015 at an annual resolution, covering crops, livestock, and forestry.

Keywords: Energy analysis of agriculture; Energy efficiency of agriculture; 20th century Colombian agriculture; Trade-driven socioecological transition (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:231:y:2025:i:c:s0921800925000242

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2025.108541

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