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Literature review of comparative benefits of conventional and organic farming
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11/19/2014
Research Paper: Organic vs. Conventional agriculture As the global population continues to rise, the amount of food needed to feed the people will increase as well. Two types of agriculture systems have been the backbone for crop production for decades if not centuries: conventional and organic agriculture— both methods could not be any more different. Conventional agriculture, a method that uses synthetic chemical pesticides, technologies or additives, and practices that are unsustainable is the leading producer for our food. On the other side of spectrum, organic agriculture generally, performed in a much smaller scale, does not use synthetic chemicals and utilize methods that are environmentally sound. Most conventional
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A study of 362 datasets found that organic agriculture produces 80% of conventional yield with 21% standard deviation (Tomek et al. 2012). Second, organic farming requires less energy input which equates to less money spend from the farmers in addition to lowering carbon emissions. A study by the Department of Environment shows that organic agriculture uses 25 percent less than energy than their chemical counterparts, and certain crops like organic leeks and broccoli use 58 and 49 percent less, respectively (Bialis et al. 2013). Third, organic farming does not use pesticides. According to the World Health Center, 20,000 people die annually from the exposure of pesticides (Costa et al. 2014). Fourth, the methods that organic farmers use are better for the environment in the long run. And lastly, organic farming creates more jobs. A study done in United Kingdom shows 93,000 jobs could be created if Britain were to make a full scale shift to organic farming (Herro 2006). Although conventional agriculture is the primary producer for food currently, a large scale shift to organic agriculture is better suited to feed the world because organic agriculture can produce at adequate yield, requires less energy input, do not use …show more content…
It is estimated that 37 farmers leave the land every day to pursuit in different field (Herro 2006). The decline in rural farmers is from the consequences of industrialization of agriculture. Only 1 percent of the UK workforce is now employed on farm, compared to 35 percent in the last century (Herro 2006). Many of these workers are being weaved out by better technologies that can do the same work at a faster and more efficient rate. On the contrary, organic farming relies more on people for knowledge, daily monitoring, and production. A study by the Soil Association shows organic farming can potentially provide 32 percent more jobs per farm than conventional farming in the United Kingdom (Herro 2006). However, critics have argued that human labors will lead to higher food prices, which makes the shift infeasible. But while this may be true in developed country, a full scale shift to organic farming in developing countries, where labors are much cheaper than pesticides, can lead to a much higher profit for the farmers. Organic farming attracts younger employees than any other work industry. Currently, the average age for conventional farmer is 56 (Herro 2006). If a full scale shift to organic farming were to happen, it would draw a more vibrant and enthusiastic workforce who are food conscious than that older generations, setting up a platform
Organic fertilisers and natural pest control methods minimise the impact of viticulture on the environment. In recent years there has been a considerable movement by some growers towards an organic approach. This is as a result of consumer driven trends and pressure to minimise the environmental impact of viticulture.
Today’s economy and the environment are hurting due to the lack of nurture we have been providing. Conventional farming rules the world of agriculture, but not without a fight from organic farming. Organic farming is seen as the way of farming that might potentially nurture our nature back to health along with the added benefit of improving our own health. With her piece “Organic farming healthier, more efficient than Status Quo,” published in the Kansas State Collegian on September 3, 2013, writer Anurag Muthyam brings forth the importance behind organic farming methods. Muthyam is a senior at Kansas State University working towards a degree in Management. This piece paints the picture of how organic farming methods
The amount of foodstuffs produced by organic farms does not meet the demand of the population, which is the main objective of farming. Observing the United States of America alone and using myself as the average American we
The idea of the family farm has been destroyed by large food corporations. As discussed in class, industrial farming typically leads to the mass produ...
Organic foods have become more and more popular over the years, and consumers may or may not be knowledgeable when shopping for organic and/or conventional foods. This report will help define the difference between organic and conventional foods and farming, including the health benefits and risks. The demand for organic foods will also be discussed briefly. The purpose of this research is to describe and identify the advantages and issues that are involved with organic and inorganic foods.
For years organic farmers and conventional farmers have feuded over which is superior. Organic farmers argue that their product is more eco-friendly because they do not use the synthetic chemicals and fertilizers conventional farmer’s use. Conventional farmers argue that their product is healthier and yields more. People tend to have stereotypes regarding the two types of farmers. Organic farmers are usually thought of as liberal, hippy, tree-huggers while conventional farmers are usually thought of as right-wing, industrialists. Obviously, some do adhere to this stereotype, but a majority of these farmers are normal, hardworking people. Although these farmers, both believe in their methods, one is no better than the other. There are advantages and disadvantages to both, but there is no true superior method of crop farming.
With the world’s population continuing to increase, the demand for food is higher than ever. This increase in food demand also calls for more efficient ways of growing and providing the food. Two methods that are very controversial are the organic and conventional method. While many people support the organic method because of its known benefits, others feel that it is an over inflated industry that cheats consumers out of their money. But recently many studies have disproved those critics. These studies prove that Organic food is a better choice than conventional because it is better for the environment, avoids the use of chemicals, and is generally more beneficial.
The first major issue facing the agricultural industry is that the current farmer population is aging. The average age of a farmer has increased from 48 to 54 over the past 15 years This increase in age over the last 10 years has lead to a 31% decrease in the number of farmers between the ages of 35 to 54 and a 40% decrease in the number of farmers under the age of 35 ("2011 Census of Agriculture"). This means that there are not enough young farmers to take the place of those that will be retiring. There are several reasons for this, the two main ones being that young people lack interest in agriculture, or the ones that are interested lack the finances required for the initial
The biologists and former research administrators a the Department of Agriculture, Martin H. Rogoff and Stephen L. Rawlins imagine a future that food production system in fields would be planted with biomass perennial crops. This food system would be more cost efficient,automated, and need few workers. The generation of a robotic driven utopia that will make farmers obsolete, which which will put “hundred of millions of farmers across the globe face the prospect of permanent elimination”, says Jeremy Rifkin. The extinction of human agriculture will not only influence the farmers’ lives but test the stability of an economy,where majority workforce is unemployment that can direct us into a global panic or recession. As if we were a table with four legs yet one leg out off then we begin to wobble and totter from side to side,while we collapse.
The term “organic” is almost everywhere in modern society, whether it’s used to promote a product or it’s debated on whether it really benefits the human diet. Organic food is heavily debated on as it appears more and more in local grocery stores and farmers markets begin to populate, it raises questions such as “Is organic food better than food grown with pesticides and biologically engineered genes?” and “Are there benefits to eating organically over foods grown in any other way?” In terms of what data and results show in research may help lead to answers to most of the heavily debated issues throughout discussions on organic food.
This is mainly because with organic methods there is no need to spend money on a wide array of chemicals, eliminating the fuel cost of applying the substances, but yet your producing just as much, increasing the overall profit line (Delate). Furthermore, there is an ever-expanding organic market. Organic food sales have increased from $1 billion in 1990 to $26 billion in 2010. Likewise, the sale of organic vegetables and fruits in 2010 increased tremendously by 11.8% from 2009, despite a slow economy (2011 Organic Industry Survey). Organic farming has also shown to improve rural farm communities by creating more sustainable local jobs (Hanley). According to a survey from the United Nations, Organic agriculture provides on average 30% more sustainable jobs per hectare than conventional farms (Can Organic). In addition organic systems foster on-farm processing and direct marketing, which further increases the prospects for job creation. According to the Organic Trade Association, organic farms have an operational turnover of $45,697 almost double the profit of conventional farmers, which averages $25,448 (2011 Organic Industry Survey). In the organic grain and soybean systems at Iowa State, though deprived of the premiums, still over half of the organic methods were still more lucrative. Then once the price premiums were added the other half rapidly made up the differences and outdid the conventional methods (Delate). At the FTS they’ve found their the organic systems to be almost three times more profitable than their conventional systems. For comparison the average profit for the organic setups was $558 an acre per year against just $190 an acre per year on average for the conventional setups (FTS). Their most lucrative grain crop being the organically developed wheat achieving $835 an acre per year,
Conclusion: Now a day’s organic food is getting popular and people are getting aware about the health promoting benefits of having organic food and it is easily available in the grocery store labeled as organic. The main reason most of the people don’t opt for organic food is it is higher in price, we have a false sense that conventional food comes at lower price, the price does not include the government spending on cleaning of pollution caused by producing such conventional produces, and government subsidies on agriculture, these are all tax payers money and ultimately goes from our pocket, thus why thing on short term benefits of conventional food, when organic food has long term benefit on our health , environment and future.
First of all, the main reason that people choose organic food is that people think organic foods have less chemical residue, such as pesticide, and fertilizer. In the article “Organic foods contain higher levels of certain nutrients, lower levels of pesticides, and may provide health benefits for the consumer”, Crinnion indicated that organic foods just had 33 percent of the amount of pesticide and fertilizer residues that found in conventional foods, and conventional foods contain two or more types of chemical residues than organic foods (Crinnion, 2010). In addition, Crinnion used a study of Seattle preschoolers as an example to demonstrate organic foods have less pesticide residues. The study of Seattle concluded that children who ate more conventional foods had six times higher level of pesticide resi...
In accordance to Charles (2010) the term sustainable agriculture means “any system of food and fiber production that follows the following goals: (a) Reduction of the use of off-farm inputs that have a great potential to harm the health of farmers and consumers or the environment, (b) production of biological and genetic potential of plant and animal species, (c) profitable and efficient production with emphasis on improvements of farm management and conservation of soil, water, energy, and biological resources, (d) incorporation of the natural processes, including fixation of nitrogen, nutrients cycling, and pest-predator relationships into the agricultural production processes, and (e) improvements of the match between cropping patterns and the productive potential and physical limitations of agricultural lands to ensure long term sustainability of current production levels”.
(The Sustainability of Irish Agriculture, n.d.) Sustainability is very important on my home farm. Practices have been put in place that won’t cause harm to the environment. My home farm is a small, family enterprise and I feel that new approaches are needed in order to maintain the farms sustainability status. Non-renewable inputs that are harmful to the environment or to the health of farmers should be minimised. As well as this, farmers have knowledge and skills that could be put into use, therefore substituting human capital for costly external outputs. Sustainable agriculture outcomes can be positive for food productivity, reduced pesticide use and carbon balances. (Agricultural Sustainability: concepts, principles and evidence, 2007) In this essay, I will discuss the principles and practices of sustainable agriculture, identifying how they may relate to my home farm. I will then discuss whether or not present activities can change to more sustainable methods in the