By Philip Stott
In order to survive climate change, population growth, and the constant mutation of pests and diseases, human beings need as many forms of crop and animal production as they can muster. Organic farming will always have a role in this process, albeit a small one. Today organic farming supplies less than 1% of food in affluent countries and a declining proportion in the developing world. The idea that organic farming can ever be a large-scale alternative to other forms of farming is a pernicious recent myth. There are also other elements to this myth, namely that organic farming is ‘safer’, ‘better’, and more ‘natural’.
In reality, organic farming is no more ‘natural’ than any other form of farming. The crops planted have, like virtually all crops, been genetically modified for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. The manures used can be dangerous (I trust all organic farmers keep up-to-date with their tetanus and hepatitis injections). Moreover, introduced organisms, including bacteria, and chemicals, such as copper sulphate, are widely employed. Despite this, in economic terms, yields remain relatively low (up to 50% below more conventional yields) and there are serious problems with the transport, storage and, in some cases, even the quality of the produce. The costs of production are inevitably high and organic produce largely serves a niche market for the privileged few. I was deeply angered by the recent publication of an organic baby book, a distasteful self-indulgence for the pampered and the precious rich.
Organic farming will never be able to keep ahead of population growth and world changes, and, because of its innately extensive character, any increase in organic farming would necessitate the development of vast areas of semi-wilderness. Some forms of organic farming can also result in serious soil loss and soil erosion.
Despite all the media hype, no one has yet died from a modern genetically modified product, some of which are already the most tested organisms ever. There have, however, been a number of serious illnesses and deaths attributable to certain forms of organic production, where the controls are not so good.
Organic farming will thus constitute, at best, a small part of a wider strategy for our future survival and development. The idea that it can replace other forms of agriculture is a dangerous lie, especially in a world demanding, at one and the same time, a huge increase in farm output and yet more land devoted to wildlife conservation.
-Stott is a Professor of Biogeography, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London.
Reprint permission given by AgAir Update, P.O. Box 850, Perry, GA 31069 - an international agricultural aviation publication.
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