Organic farming is becoming the most innovative form of agriculture across the world. It is a rejection of the notion that in order to have a high yield of produce, pesticides are needed. Farmers are not just going back to a traditional way of farming, using methods such as crop rotation which were utilised long before synthetic pesticides were even invented, but they also have to come up with innovative ways of dealing with pests and insects without pesticides or herbicides.
For many farmers, this is an empowering switch. The organic system allows the farmer more control, problem solving without chemicals. The benefits of the lack of chemicals are obvious; less exposure means fewer health risks. The high toxicity of the pesticides in use at the moment results in an estimated 18,000 deaths each year. Long term health effects of occupational pesticide exposure include respiratory disorders, cancer and neurological deficits.
However, it is not just health benefits that are an improvement; farming organically opens up new markets for farmers, giving them a new opportunity for business. The implementation of organic farming also improves the overall quality of the soil and allows for a more sustainable approach to their production.
0.9% of the total world farmland is now organic. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation describe organic agriculture as a ‘holistic production management system which promotes and enhances agro-ecosystem health, including biodiversity, biological cycles and soil biological activity.’ Organic farming is often described as ineffective, losing much produce to weeds and insects. This is absolutely not the case. A number of studies attest organic farming methods can produce even higher yields than conventional methods. After a period of a few years, the opportunity with organic farming to increase food production levels is huge, the lack of pesticides means reversing the degradation of agricultural soils and increasing soil fertility and health. It is a sustainable system, which would increase food security, especially in developing countries where self-sufficiency is key. A reliance on petrochemicals is neither renewable nor sustainable. The switch to organic farming is a logical one.
