Greenhouse Production System Choices: Is Modern Technology Better for Environment? Case Study from Turkey

Abstract

Tomato is one of the most widely cultivated crops in the world. Turkey produces on average almost 10 million tons of tomatoes annually. Greenhouse tomato production in Turkey has been significantly increasing in the last decade. However, environmental concerns are increasing
especially about greenhouse production. There is also a misunderstanding among people that if a greenhouse is equipped with sophisticated technological systems of production, this will lead an environmentally friendly production because of more awareness, more certification, etc.
However, studies show that there is not a significant correlation between technological investments and environmentally friendly practices. The empirical data used in this article was gathered by a research project which was granted by TUBITAK (Science and Technological Research Council of Turkey). A survey and observation techniques were used as a data collection method. Meanwhile, “Life Cycle Assessment” method was used to measure the impact of conventional farming and modern farming on the environment. The significant finding of the research is that even though profit obtained from unit area in a greenhouse which is equipped with a sophisticated technology is higher than a low technology greenhouse, there is a significant difference between high and low tech greenhouse systems in terms of environmental pollution.