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Organic farming

The neutrality of this article is disputed.

Organic farming is an agricultural approach that avoids the use of synthetic chemicals and genetically modified organisms (GMOs), and follows the principles of sustainable agriculture. In many countries, including the US and in the EU, organic farming is also governed by legal standards. General characteristics of organic farming are:

In most of the world, organic certification is available to farms that wish to formally declare their "organic" status. Depending on the country, certification is either overseen by legislation, or managed by private certifiction bodies. Where certification is governed by law, it is usually illegal for a non-certified producer to call itself or its products "organic".

Today, organic farming is the focus of much public attention and agricultural industry debate. The rise of what has been called organic farming over the last century has been driven by small, independent producers. Over the last decade, explosive growth in demand for organic foods has encouraged the participation of large agribusiness interests, and they may soon dominate the organic market. As the volume of production and range of "organic" products increases, the definition of organic farming as an agricultural method is easily confused with the related areas of organic food and organic certification.

One early goal of the organic movement was to encourage consumption of locally grown food, which was promoted through slogans such as "Know Your Food, Know Your Farmer". With the promulgation of national (or regional) standards for production of organic food, this goal has been diverted to the sidelines, with the large percentage of certified organic food now coming from corporate farmers such as General Mills and Kraft Foods.

Since the early 1990s, the retail market for organic farming in developed economies has been growing by about 20% annually due to increasing consumer demand. There are a variety of consumer concerns responsible for this increase. One is fear of foodstuffs with possibly harmful chemicals. Another is concern about possible environmental damage associated with conventional agriculture. Yet another is the possibility of immediate side-effects, such as, for example, the destruction of beneficial soil organisms by the use of ammonium nitrate.

Among people who prefer organic foods, many consider them to be superior to conventionally produced foods because they believe one or more of the following:

Studies to date have shown no significant differences regarding taste and nutritional content between organic and conventional foods. The research of Baker et al (Food Add Contam 19:427-446) found that organically grown produce had one-third the pesticide residue of conventionally grown produce. The potential harmfulness of these residues was not established.

A current market trend is the availability of organic fiber for clothing, such as cotton. Proponents of organic fiber point to exceptionally high levels of the use of pesticides and other chemicals in conventional fiber production, and claim environmental abuse through conventional agriculture.

Table of contents
1 Organic Farming vs. Modern Conventional Farming
2 Organic Farming Controversies
3 See Also
4 External Links

Organic Farming vs. Modern Conventional Farming

Organic farming can be broadly contrasted with the conventional commercial operations that currently produce most of the food consumed in the developed nations. These differences account for much of the controversy and claims surrounding organic food and agriculture.

The contrast is as much economic as it is between methods of production: today, organic farming is typically small business, and conventional farming is big business.

As the "organic" label increases in consumer appeal, major food companies will enter the market with increasing aggressiveness. If market forces demand it, it remains to be seen how the big commmerical producers will handle the necessary large-scale radical change in farming technique.

Organic Farming Controversies

Organic farming is popularly regarded as the "opposite" of the modern food production system. This is not surprising, given that the farming and business methods tend to be quite different: non-chemical vs. chemical, small-scale vs. large-scale, local vs. national/international. Environmental activists, for one, actively promote organic agriculture, while attacking the agri-business conglomerates. Thus, the claims of organic agriculture are currently disputed by various parties.

The environmental benefits of organic farming are a subject of some debate. Foremost in its favor, organic farming does not result in the release of chemical pesticides into the food supply or the environment, nor the leaching of artificial fertilizer. Critics claim that organic advocates ignore the fact that many synthetic pesticides are improvements on natural pesticides, with the goal of making them less dangerous to humans and more environmentally friendly. Organic advocates in turn respond that they use natural pesticides as a last resort, rather controlling pests through growing healthier, disease-resistant plants, using cover crops and crop rotation, and encouraging beneficial insects and birds. The most commonly used organic pesticides are Bt, petroleum oil, soybean oil, and pyrethrum.

In addition, proponents of conventional farming argue that organic farms are less productive, requiring more land to be used to produce the same amount of food. The research of Maeder et al (Science 296 1694-1697) which summarized a twenty-one year Swiss study into organic farming showed an average yield loss of 20%. These results have been contradicted by at least one editorial by Liebhardt (Get the facts straight: organic agriculture yields are good. OFRF Information Bulletin #10, Summer), based upon primarily unpublished data, which claims that over 154 growing seasons' worth of data on various crops, organic crops yielded 95% of crops grown under conventional conditions.

Some organic farming advocates believe that, even if yields are currently lower, these results are obtained without the huge subsidies paid to conventional farmers, and expect yields to be equivalent or higher if organic farming were subsidised to the same level.

Furthermore, some organic farming practices are claimed to do more damage than conventional practices – for instance, the practice of ploughing (see tillage) to prepare soil for planting is claimed to increase soil damage compared to using Roundup, a herbicide. Another argument against organic farming is that while it works acceptably at present because pests are kept under control in surrounding conventional farms and thus do not spread into organic farms, if it became universal the "islands" they operate on would disappear and pests would become a severe issue. (This also works in reverse, as organic farms can be islands of safety for predator insects and pollinators.) Furthermore, organic farms often use manure from livestock fed "non-organic" grain. This is a de facto movement of "chemical" fertilizer from non-organic farms to organic farms.

Some critics also point out organic food could be less safe than non-organic food : some people argue that organic food increases one's exposure to biological contaminants, with greater risk of food born diseases. In particular concerns are related to the use of manure, well known for carrying human pathogens and presence of mycotoxins from molds. In a large French study carried out by Inra, Coopagri Bretagne and ESMSA in 1999-2000, it has been shown for example that the patuline (produced by Penicillium expansum and some Aspergillus) in apples and DON in wheat had to be strongly watched for [1].

See Also

External Links