Energiebilanzen für Obstimporte: Äpfel aus Deutschland oder Übersee?

This work compares the primary energy requirement for apples marketed in Germany in April which were either home-grown in Germany or imported from overseas. The primary energy requirement was calculated for apples (cv. ‘Braeburn’ and ‘Golden Delicious’) picked during mid-October near Bonn, Germany, with subsequent 5-month on-site CA storage at ca. 1°C until mid-March. This was compared with energy requirements for apples of the same cultivar grown in a Southern hemisphere winter in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand or Grabouw-Elgin, Western Cape, South Africa, picked in March, and with subsequent 28- or 14-day transport, respectively, on reefers to Antwerp for sale in April in Germany. The primary energy required for cultivating Braeburn apples in New Zealand (ca. 2.1 MJ/kg apple fruit) represented 38% of their overall primary energy requirement, compared with 2.8 MJ/kg fruit in Germany or South Africa, with smaller harvests of 40 t/ha cf. 90 t/ha in New Zealand. Braeburn and Golden Delicious apples grown and stored locally in Germany consumed nearly 6 MJ/kg fruit, which included ca. 0.8 MJ/kg for 5-month CA storage during the winter. This compared favourably with 7.2–7.5 MJ/kg for overseas shipment from New Zealand or South Africa, i.e. a 22–27% greater energy requirement for imported fruits. The CA storage of home-grown apples in Germany partially compensated for the energy required to import the fresh fruit from overseas. To compensate fully for imports from South Africa or New Zealand, home-grown apples had to be stored locally for ca. 9 or 18 months, respectively, i.e. in the latter case beyond the next harvest. The lower primary energy required for domestic apple fruit is discussed with respect to providing local employment, fruit orchards preserving the countryside, fruit quality, food safety and quality assurance schemes such as QS and EUREP-GAP, food security of local fruit, and networking favouring regional produce.