Breaking the global plateau in strawberry production: the potential for utility scale agrivoltaics

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Chinese explanation / 中文解读

中文解读待补充：本站会优先为光伏效率、钙钛矿太阳能电池、储能技术、太阳能热利用、BIPV、并网技术等高价值论文补充中文说明。

Original abstract

Strawberry production is confronting a plateau in key regions, due to competition for land and intensifying climate-based stressors, all amid a surge in global demand. We discuss how the expansion of solar energy may help overcome this plateau. We review the scales at which solar farms are built and design elements that facilitate crop production under and between photovoltaic panels. We consider the two general categorical designs for solar farms based on their primary purpose: agriculture-centric and energy-centric designs. By considering both the scale and design approaches for solar farm development, we identify potential new locations for strawberry cultivation. Integrating strawberry production into utility-scale, energy-centric solar farms directly addresses two major constraints underlying the current production plateau: limited access to farmland and increasing climate stress. A summary of previous studies reveals evidence that solar farms offer multifaceted benefits including the mitigation of extreme weather through increased soil moisture retention and shading that alleviates heat stress, all critical for sustaining and potentially improving strawberry yields. We examine strawberry’s physiological responses to shading, highlighting how a plant with a C3 photosynthetic pathway can thrive in a solar farm. We conclude by highlighting key steps needed to ensure that agrivoltaics practices could be allowed at a solar farm to ensure sustainable production. Integrating a high-value crop into utility scale, energy-centric solar farms offer a sustainable pathway to address urgent challenges in food security and climate resilience by simultaneously increasing strawberry production and potentially advance renewable energy production.

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