Identifying resource-conscious and low-carbon agricultural development pathways through land use modelling

Increasing agricultural production with current resources and technology may lead to increased GHG emissions. Additionally, large population countries like India face substantial challenges in terms of food demand, agro-ecological heterogeneity, carbon footprint and depleting natural resources, thus increasing the decision complexities for policymakers and planners. We aim to examine the potential of producing more food from available agricultural land with low-carbon (reduced GHG emissions) and resource-conscious (optimal resource use) options. The current study develops multiple calorie production and emission-centric land use using a land use optimization model wherein the calorie production and emission objective, resource and emissions constraints, and food production targets interact across multiple spatial levels. The capabilities of the developed model are demonstrated with a case study in India targeting ten crops (grown over two seasons) covering three food groups (cereals, legumes, and oilseeds). Three hypothetical scenarios for each objective of maximizing calories production (