Understanding the energy intensity change in China's food industry: A comprehensive decomposition method

Although China's food industry is not energy-intensive, its rapid development has brought enormous challenges to the realization of the energy-saving goal due to its huge scale. So the industry must reduce its energy intensity as much as possible. This paper uses a comprehensive decomposition analysis to study the energy intensity changes in China's food industry between 2000 and 2013, and draws the following conclusions: (1) technological progress have the most significant impact on reducing energy intensity, reducing it by 70.2%; (2) technical efficiency change hinders the energy intensity decline, which in turn increases it by 18.4%; (3) the substitution of capital for energy is conducive to the decline of energy intensity; (4) the government's industrial policy has played a role in energy conservation, but there is room for improvement. Therefore, this paper suggests that: Firstly, the R&D investment in production and management technology should continue to increase, and more importance should be attached to technology diffusion and transfer between regions. Secondly, more effective incentives and stricter constraints should be implemented for the food industry. Thirdly, the planning of the industry layout should be adapted to regional advantages, and targeted policies should be carried out in different regions.