Organic Farming – The Good – The Bad – The Muddy

Organic farming is growing in popularity as consumers lean towards a healthier and more sustainable way of living. Studies have shown that organic farming can yield drastic long-term benefits for biodiversity, creating an environment which fully supports itself. By placing hazardous chemicals in and on our food they are able to create products that are pleasant to the eye of the consumer.

However, the chemicals used are destroying both the consumer and the planet we live on. Yet however ideal the concept of organic farming is, this method is becoming impossible for the average American farmer to survive on financially, without using chemical additives.

To truly understand the benefits of organic farming you have to know what it is. Organic farming is an ecologically balanced form of agriculture centered on the concept of letting nature do what nature does best. Organic farmers do not use pesticides or fertilizers on crops and they do not feed their animals hormones or antibiotics. The idea of organic farming is to get back to the basics, and to remove toxic chemicals from our food and our environment.

By producing organic foods, we promote an environment that is less toxic for all living species. The soil improves greatly when switched to organic farming practices. Due to the crop rotations, inter-cropping, cover crops and minimum tillage, soil is able to produce healthy nutrients that not only help crops grow, but also help increase the nutrient density of our food. Because the soil faces less erosive forces, we are able to limit the amount of erosion we see on farms.

It is important to understand that the chemicals and pesticides sprayed on our food go directly into our ground water. By creating a less erosive and organic farm we are able to make sure organic fertilizers are not seeping into the ground water, and the lack of chemicals used on the plants, will put an end to the serious problem we are seeing with water pollution.

Those who support natural family farming talk about the benefits of this method.  Organic agriculture helps improve air quality, and limits the amount of fossil fuels being produced to run non-organic farms. It helps reduce greenhouse effects and global warming through the plant’s ability to obtain carbon through the soil.

By switching to organic farming we find that there is an increase to disease resistance and climatic stress. You will find a diverse combination of plants and animals on an organic farm, which are not pests, but instead they are helping each other to flourish. On organic farms, we are seeing increased numbers of pollinators and pest predators, nature’s way of maintaining balance in agricultural situations.

With the growing popularity of organic farming the benefits are endless. Unfortunately, the government is making it hard for farmers to survive financially if they choose to participate in organic farming. Only two percent of our food comes from organic sources, meaning there is still a large imbalance in the agricultural world. The earth would truly benefit if we made organic farming the standard, however we still have a long way to go before we see results as drastic as we would like.