I am just not finding the information in your post about the purported environmental degradation caused by organic agriculture to be verifiable when I do a web search. I did find many, many sites that say exactly the opposite (and I would note that your statistics on how popular organic products are is quite out of date). I believe it is rapidly gaining in popularity.
It would be helpful here, since we are all interested in learning about new things, to add the web links to your posts, if you don't mind. Did that one come from an Ayn Rand site or something? ;-)
This is what I found at a different site, which seems to contradict your information:
Organic Agriculture Today
~ Producing Products Sustainably ~
Written in association with
The Organic Trade Association
The production and use of organic food products has taken firm root today as a serious alternative for consumers and farmers. Particularly since the early 1990s, a growing number of North American farmers have taken steps to minimize the use of, and consumers' exposure to, toxic and persistent pesticides by establishing organic agricultural practices.
Organic farming appears very much like traditional farming. The main difference is in the use of chemicals for treatment and nourishment. Pictured here, a tractor sprays organic pesticides of molasses and enzymes to ensure a healthy crop production. (Photo: RuralNI)
Organic farming is about building a sustainable, healthy and productive future for every aspect of our planet: the soil, water supply, animals and humans. Consumers who want to minimize their -- and the environment's -- exposure to toxic and persistent chemicals can do so by buying organic foods and organic fiber products, and by choosing organic agricultural methods for home pest control and lawn care. It's simply putting nature to work while removing many potential health risks that exist from certain food production today, mainly the use of pesticides.
In March 2001, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released findings showing measurable amounts of residual organophosphate pesticides in a group of people who were studied. The National Academies of Sciences has indicated that one out of four developmental and behavioral problems in children may be linked to genetic and environmental factors, including exposure to lead, mercury and organophosphate pesticides. When you put these two studies together, the conclusions could be cause for concern. Still, it should be noted that there is still more scientists and doctors need to learn about the long-term health effects of the low-level presence of organophosphates in humans.
Interestingly, a separate study to assess preschool children's organophosphate exposure in the Seattle Metropolitan area showed that one child who showed no measurable pesticide residue lived in a family that buys exclusively organic produce and does not use any pesticides at home. While this does not conclude that there were any serious health risks to the remainder of the group, it does indicate that use of organic food and non-food products can reduce the presence of those products in humans.
Food Production Demands
With increasing demands for food supplies during the past 60 years, we saw the introduction of the use of harsh chemicals and synthetic fertilizers as a way for farmers to boost crop yields. This subsequently has been followed by the more recent adoption of planting genetically modified crops.
Runoffs from farms can introduce harmful pesticides, wastes and other pollutants into rivers and streams. Organic farming reduces the level of these contaminants from runoffs. (USDA)
Even today, there are toxic and persistent pesticides still used in agriculture. CDC noted that organophosphate pesticides account for approximately half of the insecticides used in the United States. An estimated 60 million pounds of organophosphate pesticides are applied to about 60 million acres of U.S. agricultural crops annually, and an additional 17 million pounds are used per year for nonagricultural uses, such as in household pest control products and in lawn and garden sprays.
Organic Practices
The National Organic Standards Board defines organic agriculture as an ecological production management system that promotes and enhances biodiversity, biological cycles and soil biological activity. It is based on minimal use of off-farm inputs and on management practices that restore, maintain and enhance ecological harmony.
Despite the fact that less than 1 percent of U.S. agriculture research dollars are spent on organic practices, organic production has been shown to have yields comparable to, and sometimes higher than, conventional systems (American Journal of Alternative Agriculture, 1999; Organic Farming Research Foundation Information Bulletin, Summer 2001). In addition, because organic production improves soil quality as measured by soil structure, organic matter, biological activity, water infiltration and water-holding capacity, organic systems generally produce higher yields than crops grown using conventional high-input methods during drought, leading to production stability year after year.
Organic agriculture is a collection of tested agricultural practices by diligent farmers intent on preserving the health of our planet. Organic agriculture is sustainable, keeping soils healthy and alive, and helping to minimize contamination of the earth's precious water supplies.
Organophosphates are not allowed in organic agriculture. Instead, organic growers use biological and cultural practices as their first line of defense against pests. Methods used include crop rotation, the selection of pest- and disease- resistant varieties, nutrient and water management, the provision of habitat for the natural enemies of pests, and release of beneficial organisms to protect crops from damage. The only pesticides allowed in organic agriculture must be on a USDA approved list, with restricted use.
This kohlrabi bulb, a member of the cabbage family, was grown using organic farming practices. (Courtesy: OTA)
In addition, organic practices prohibit the use of genetic engineering, irradiation, sewage sludge, antibiotics, and hormones. These practices are allowed in other forms of raising and producing our food, and other agricultural products.
Because organic agriculture respects the balance of microorganisms in the soil, organic producers use composted manure and other natural materials, as well as crop rotation, to help improve soil fertility, rather than synthetic fertilizers that can result in an overabundance of nitrogen and phosphorous in the ground. As a result, organic practices protect ground water supplies and avoid runoff of chemicals that can cause "dead zones" in larger bodies of water.
The Global Scene
In Europe it's not an easy task to convince traditional farmers the benefits of organic farming, according to the Dutch Wageningen University Research Centre. It has had its successes, however. This Dutch organic dairy farm produces healthy wholesome milk while creating less water pollution near the farm. (WURC photo by Hans Dijkstra)
Comparisons in Europe, for instance, have shown nitrate leaching rates on organic farms are 40-57 percent lower per hectare (roughly 2.5 acres or 12,000 square yards) and carbon dioxide emissions are 40-60 percent lower per hectare than conventional systems, according to the report Environmental and Resource Use Impacts of Organic Farming in Europe.
On the other hand, current conventional practices have led to some measurable problems, including a high level of toxic metals in commercial fertilizers (Waste Lands: The Threat of Toxic Fertilizer). An analysis of 29 fertilizers found that each contained 22 different heavy metals. In 20 of the products, levels exceeded the limits set on wastes sent to public landfills, with disturbing quantities of arsenic, lead, mercury, cadmium, chromium, and dioxin, among others.
Furthermore, polluted runoff from farms and cities went largely unabated and actually increased over the past 30 years according to a 2001 report from the Pew Oceans Commission. The report noted that many of the nation's coastal environments exhibit symptoms of over-enrichment from these run-offs. Symptoms include harmful algal blooms, loss of seagrasses and coral reefs, and serious oxygen depletion. Coastal regions, as a result, have suffered reduced production of valuable fisheries and threats to biodiversity and ecosystems less resilient to natural and human influences.
Species Diversity, Conservation & World Food Demands
Because organic practices help safeguard the environment and protect habitats, organic production conserves and promotes species diversity. In the United Kingdom, a study comparing biodiversity in organic farming and conventional farming systems found that organic farms had five times as many wild plants in arable (farmable) fields and 57 percent more species (Source: The Biodiversity Benefits of Organic Farming)..
Organic fruits and vegetables are becoming increasingly more popular at mainstream markets in the US. Not only are they healthy, but they can be more robust in flavor than typical produce. (Photo: USDA)
The organic farms also had 25 percent more birds at the field edge, 44 percent more in the field in autumn and winter, and 2.2 times as many breeding skylarks and higher skylark breeding rates. In addition, they had 1.6 times as many of the invertebrate arthropods that make up bird food; three times as many non-pest butterflies in the crop areas; one to five times as many spider numbers, and one to two times as many spider species. They also showed a significant decrease in aphid numbers.
Buying organic products is also a way to support conservation of our land. Organic products, whether foods or fiber, are produced through a system of farming that maintains and replenishes soil fertility in an ecological way. There were approximately 1.3 million acres in certified organic production in the United States in 1997. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service estimates 2.6 million acres were in production in 2001.
The DDT Lesson
Perhaps the harshest and most damaging of the chemicals introduced as a pesticide was DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) which caused so much harm to animals and humans, its use was banned in the US in 1973. In fact, DDT directly attributed to the near-demise of the bald eagle (as well as other species), which was taken off of the endangered species list nearly 25 years after DDT was banned. DDT is still used in some parts of the world.
(Eric McLamb - ecology.com)
As far as feeding the world, the late Donella Meadows, who served as director of the Sustainability Institute, wrote: "We already grow enough food to feed everyone; the excess simply is not distributed where it is needed. Industrial agriculture, far from being the salvation it promises, is actually undermining the resource base-healthy soil, clean water, and diversity of plants and animals-needed to sustain the world's growing human population in the long term. If anything can restore that resource base and at the same time eliminate hunger it is organic methods."
Organic foods and products are making a healthy comeback from a by-gone era, but in more of the light of what's healthy for ourselves and Earth's ecology. And the production and use of these products have become the choice of a rapidly growing number of farmers and consumers today. It does prove that the connection between human health and our ecology are indelibly intertwined. *****************
Did you know…?
It takes roughly one-third of a pound of chemicals (pesticides and synthetic fertilizers) to grow enough conventional cotton for just one T-shirt.
In Germany, several water utilities now pay farmers to switch to organic operations because such conversion costs less than removing farm chemicals used in conventional agriculture from water supplies.
More than 1 million children between the ages of 1 and 5 ingest at least 15 pesticides every day from fruits and vegetables. More than 600,000 of these children eat a dose of organophosphate insecticides that the federal government considers unsafe, and 61,000 eat doses that exceed benchmark levels by a factor of 10 or more.
U.S. consumers can experience up to 70 daily exposures to residues from persistent organic pollutants (POPs) through their diets. The top ten POP-contaminated food items, in alphabetical order, are butter, cantaloupe, cucumbers/pickles, meatloaf, peanuts, popcorn, radishes, spinach, summer squash, and winter squash. The use of POPs is not allowed in organic agriculture.
A 1999 U.S. Geological Survey study showed that more than 90 percent of water and fish samples from streams and about 50 percent of all sampled wells contained one or more pesticides.
ecology.com |
