Drivers of Agricultural Energy Efficiency in the Netherlands: Raw Material Imports, Land Use, and Fossil Fuel Consumption

This study investigates the factors influencing agricultural energy effectiveness in the Netherlands during the period 1990-2022. The explanatory variables include agricultural raw materials imports, agricultural land, agriculture, forestry, and fishing value added per worker, agriculture, forestry, and fishing natural gas use, and agriculture, forestry, and fishing oil use. Advanced time-series techniques incorporating Fourier functions were employed. Unit root testing was conducted using standard ADF and Fourier ADF tests, while cointegration analysis utilized the Fourier Engle-Granger test. Long- and short-term coefficients were estimated through Fourier-augmented FMOLS and CCR, with DOLS serving as a robustness check. The findings reveal that agricultural raw materials imports, agricultural land, and value added per worker positively influence agricultural energy effectiveness. Conversely, natural gas and oil use in agriculture, forestry, and fishing negatively impact energy effectiveness. These results highlight the importance of transitioning toward renewable energy sources and adopting energy-efficient technologies in agriculture to enhance sustainability. It is also important that policymakers develop programs such as tax exemptions, subsidies, and interest-free loans that would motivate agricultural enterprises to embrace and adapt to green energy systems. Additionally, the formulation of energy efficiency standards for agricultural irrigation systems, as well as the establishment of an institutional framework for monitoring the standards, is seen as vital.