You may have heard of chickpeas as a tasty ingredient, a crunchy snack, or a new plant-based milk, but did you know that chickpeas also offer significant environmental benefits? 

In the 4 bullets below, we cover the specific advantages of chickpeas, from their ability to fix nitrogen in the soil to their efficient water usage. These qualities make chickpeas a sustainable crop choice with the potential to mitigate major environmental challenges. 

1. Nitrogen Fixing: A Natural Fertilizer Boost

Chickpeas are legumes, a family of plants known for their unique ability to fix nitrogen from the air and convert it into a form that is usable by plants. Unlike other crops that require synthetic nitrogen fertilizers be tossed onto the ground so that it can soak into their roots, chickpeas have a symbiotic relationship with nitrogen-fixing bacteria called rhizobia. These bacteria reside in nodules on the plant's roots and automatically convert atmospheric nitrogen into a form that enriches the soil with essential nutrients. No extra fertilizer needed, as Earth's air provides plenty of it! (Earth's air is 78% nitrogen)

2. Soil Fertility and Carbon Sequestration

The nitrogen-fixing ability of chickpeas not only enhances soil fertility but also contributes to carbon sequestration. This is because the process of nitrogen fixation pulls nitrogen from the air and into the soil and increases organic matter in the soil. This, in turn, improves soil structure, water-holding capacity, and overall fertility. Additionally, as chickpeas grow, they absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, helping to mitigate climate change.

3. Water Efficiency: A Thirst-Quenching Crop

Water scarcity is a significant global concern, and agriculture is a major consumer of freshwater resources. Fortunately, chickpeas have evolved to thrive in arid and semi-arid regions with limited water availability. Compared to other crops, chickpeas have lower water requirements, making them an ideal choice for water-stressed areas. Their deep root system efficiently captures water from the soil, reducing the need for excessive irrigation.

4. Climate Change Resilience

As farmers face less predictable weather patterns due to a warming atmosphere, resilient and adaptable crops are essential. Chickpeas possess some inherent traits that make them well-suited for rapid and variable growing conditions. They have a short growing season that reduces their exposure (chance for crop failure) to weather variables. Furthermore they can withstand heat stress, and they can also withstand drought stress better than other crops (a chickpea field is brown and looks like it is dead and dried up, when in fact it is flourishing). These traits, being quick, drought and heat tolerant,  help ensure stable yields even in increasingly unpredictable weather patterns. 

Conclusion:

Compared to other crops used in food production, such as almonds and soybeans, chickpeas have a smaller environmental footprint. They require fewer inputs, such as water, pesticides, and fertilizers, due to their ability to fix nitrogen and thrive in diverse soil conditions.

Sources:

1: USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. "Legume Cover Crops: Winter Survival, Nitrogen Production, and Water Quality Improvements." Available at: https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs144p2_021626.pdf

2: Khalil, Muhammad Ibrahim, et al. "Environmental Benefits of Legume Crops and Strategies for Their Improvement." Frontiers in Plant Science, vol. 10, 2019. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6531292/

3: Jukanti, Anupama K., et al. "Chickpea Crop: Genetics, Genomics, and Breeding." Plant Breeding Reviews, vol. 39, 2015.

4: Berger, Jens, et al. "A Plant for the Future: Challenges to Assure Quality and Safety of Cultivated Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) under Climate Change." Frontiers in Plant Science, vol. 9, 2018. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5803767/

5: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. "The International Year of Pulses 2016." Available at: http://www.fao.org/pulses-2016/en/