GMO FAQ
"Contrary to widespread consumer belief, organic farming is not the best way to farm from an environmental point of view. [T]here are now several cutting edge agricultural practices which are good for the environment, but difficult or impossible for organic farmers to implement within the constraints of their pre-scientific rules." Steve Savage, plant pathologist
"Increasing the proportion of agriculture that uses sustainable, organic methods of farming is not a choice, it’s a necessity. We simply can’t continue to produce food far into the future without taking care of our soils, water and biodiversity". - Claire Kremen, co-director of the Berkeley Food Institute
Among the selling points for organic foods is the widely-held belief that they are
produced using more sustainable farming practices than in conventional agriculture. Many consumers and journalists believe that organic food is safer, healthier, grown “without pesticides” and avoids the sometimes ecologically harmful intensive farming practices more commonly associated with conventional agriculture. But both organic and conventional farmers use pesticides–organic farmers use natural ones and some approved synthetics. And among scientists, there is fierce differences of opinion over whether conventional or organic farming has a larger environmental footprint.
The debate also has taken on ideological connotations with anti-GMO campaigners embracing organics as a symbol of ‘small-scale’ farming and ‘farm to table’ practices while conventional growers see intensive farming practices as more efficient, resulting in higher yields with lower ecological inputs and impact.
Overall, organic farmers generally use less toxic chemicals and more labor intensive farm management practices, and pay closer attention to soil health–organic matter, nutrients and microbial activity. Conventional agricultural intensification has a historically notorious record of wasting water, overusing fertilizers and pesticides, and polluting habitats. That’s changing as conventional farmers focus more on best practices. Multiple studies also show that non-organic farming yields considerably more food with lower costs and in some cases lower inputs per acre. It often uses less water; and some GM crops, such as insect resistant Bt corn, soybean, cotton and eggplant, require less chemical pesticides than their organic counterparts.
But chemicals are only part of the sustainability equation. Eco-responsibility means different things to different experts. Greenhouse gas emissions? Productivity per acre? Land usage? There also are less measurable practices such as treatment of farm animals. These and other factors are part of a complex value-based computation of what constitutes agricultural sustainability......To Read More...
The debate also has taken on ideological connotations with anti-GMO campaigners embracing organics as a symbol of ‘small-scale’ farming and ‘farm to table’ practices while conventional growers see intensive farming practices as more efficient, resulting in higher yields with lower ecological inputs and impact.
Overall, organic farmers generally use less toxic chemicals and more labor intensive farm management practices, and pay closer attention to soil health–organic matter, nutrients and microbial activity. Conventional agricultural intensification has a historically notorious record of wasting water, overusing fertilizers and pesticides, and polluting habitats. That’s changing as conventional farmers focus more on best practices. Multiple studies also show that non-organic farming yields considerably more food with lower costs and in some cases lower inputs per acre. It often uses less water; and some GM crops, such as insect resistant Bt corn, soybean, cotton and eggplant, require less chemical pesticides than their organic counterparts.
But chemicals are only part of the sustainability equation. Eco-responsibility means different things to different experts. Greenhouse gas emissions? Productivity per acre? Land usage? There also are less measurable practices such as treatment of farm animals. These and other factors are part of a complex value-based computation of what constitutes agricultural sustainability......To Read More...
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