Organic Farming, What is the Answer?
The "Green Movement" has taken over the world's conscience, but with every one hopping on this bandwagon, what does tomorrow hold for the food we consume?
Agribusiness and the multinational food producers over the years have done an excellent job of providing substantial amounts of nutritious food for a growing world population, but is this scenario of farming sustainable? Currently there is a tremendous amount of debate between organic farmers and conventional farmers who are looking for common answers to this question.
In many countries throughout the world including the United States, China and most of Europe; organic farming is defined by law, so that the commercial use of the term organic is regulated by the government. Unfortunately, these laws are constantly usurped by greedy and unscrupulous parties.This is due to the fact that the enduser demand for organic products in developing economies has grown at about 20% annually because of increasing awareness of organic farming methods.
Organic pest control, one of the mainstays of organic farming allows for a certain amount of pest crop damage, it encourages or introduces beneficial organisms, utilizes careful crop selection and crop rotation and mechanical, thermal and mulch controls for weeds. Organic pesticides; which are derived from plants and not chemicals, allow for the use of natural methods of protection.
Conventional farming requires farmers to precisely apply only those necessary fertilizers to the soil in order to minimize waste pollutants. Organic farmers on the other hand do not have that option because they depend on natural additives such as manure and compost, which contain fixed amounts of various elements which can not be controlled. The most common problem is over application of these organic fertilizers because of their relative lack of potency. These over applications will definitely lead to gradual pollution of the water supply.
Organic farming proponents claim that the full impact of chemical genetic engineering on food quality and plant and animal health is not yet fully understood. Opponents argue that genetic engineering is vital to create higher volumes of food in the fight to end world hunger without requiring additional land. Often forgotten in this debate, is the fact that true genetic engineering is a technique, also known as grafting and propagation has been used for centuries, and has done much good for mankind.
The pro-organic point of view regarding the environment in is that modern agriculture is depleting our natural resources such as fossil fuels and fresh water and is polluting our air, soil and water. The large quantities of chemicals, water wastage through high-volume irrigation and the heavy use of fuels for the farm machinery and long-distance transportation are some of their arguments. On the other hand an organic farm is not beyond fault, by the use of natural compost and manure on a large-scale may cause as much damage to groundwater and soil as does manufactured fertilizers.
Organic farming is at a crossroads. Even though there are laws that ensure that the rules are the same for producers and consumers, these laws have been found to be full of loopholes that have led to charges being leveled against the major certifiers in our government such as the FDA and the USDA.
When America's agribusiness converts to large scale organic farming will they have a viable chance be able to make a profit without hiking the consumer cost to unaffordable levels?
The current food distribution system favors large farming corporate operations and cannot be easily altered. What we presently know as organic farming may be entirely different in the coming years. A growing and educated consumer market is normally one of the main factors will convince conventional farmers to change over to organic agricultural production methods.
While this debate goes on, families are making their own decisions regarding this subject by doing the sane and sensible thing; growing their own foodstuffs. The "Green Movement" is more than a slogan. It has become a way of life for those who are choosing to join in to make this world a better place to live. - 17274
Agribusiness and the multinational food producers over the years have done an excellent job of providing substantial amounts of nutritious food for a growing world population, but is this scenario of farming sustainable? Currently there is a tremendous amount of debate between organic farmers and conventional farmers who are looking for common answers to this question.
In many countries throughout the world including the United States, China and most of Europe; organic farming is defined by law, so that the commercial use of the term organic is regulated by the government. Unfortunately, these laws are constantly usurped by greedy and unscrupulous parties.This is due to the fact that the enduser demand for organic products in developing economies has grown at about 20% annually because of increasing awareness of organic farming methods.
Organic pest control, one of the mainstays of organic farming allows for a certain amount of pest crop damage, it encourages or introduces beneficial organisms, utilizes careful crop selection and crop rotation and mechanical, thermal and mulch controls for weeds. Organic pesticides; which are derived from plants and not chemicals, allow for the use of natural methods of protection.
Conventional farming requires farmers to precisely apply only those necessary fertilizers to the soil in order to minimize waste pollutants. Organic farmers on the other hand do not have that option because they depend on natural additives such as manure and compost, which contain fixed amounts of various elements which can not be controlled. The most common problem is over application of these organic fertilizers because of their relative lack of potency. These over applications will definitely lead to gradual pollution of the water supply.
Organic farming proponents claim that the full impact of chemical genetic engineering on food quality and plant and animal health is not yet fully understood. Opponents argue that genetic engineering is vital to create higher volumes of food in the fight to end world hunger without requiring additional land. Often forgotten in this debate, is the fact that true genetic engineering is a technique, also known as grafting and propagation has been used for centuries, and has done much good for mankind.
The pro-organic point of view regarding the environment in is that modern agriculture is depleting our natural resources such as fossil fuels and fresh water and is polluting our air, soil and water. The large quantities of chemicals, water wastage through high-volume irrigation and the heavy use of fuels for the farm machinery and long-distance transportation are some of their arguments. On the other hand an organic farm is not beyond fault, by the use of natural compost and manure on a large-scale may cause as much damage to groundwater and soil as does manufactured fertilizers.
Organic farming is at a crossroads. Even though there are laws that ensure that the rules are the same for producers and consumers, these laws have been found to be full of loopholes that have led to charges being leveled against the major certifiers in our government such as the FDA and the USDA.
When America's agribusiness converts to large scale organic farming will they have a viable chance be able to make a profit without hiking the consumer cost to unaffordable levels?
The current food distribution system favors large farming corporate operations and cannot be easily altered. What we presently know as organic farming may be entirely different in the coming years. A growing and educated consumer market is normally one of the main factors will convince conventional farmers to change over to organic agricultural production methods.
While this debate goes on, families are making their own decisions regarding this subject by doing the sane and sensible thing; growing their own foodstuffs. The "Green Movement" is more than a slogan. It has become a way of life for those who are choosing to join in to make this world a better place to live. - 17274
About the Author:
Dick Murray is a concerned American who cares about the quality of the food that our families eat on a daily basis Our commercial food system supplies us with food that does not contain the nutrients and health benefits contained in the food we consumed not that long ago. Learn how to grow your own food and beat this system. It is not difficult and will probably be a lot of fun. To learn more visit vegetablegrowingbasics
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