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TOPIC:
"Conventional vs. Organic Agriculture"
First, let’s take a look at some of the history of conventional agricultural practices and why they’ve gone so terribly wrong.
For instance, did you know that in the late 40’s there was a radical change in farming practices in North America. This is when toxic chemicals came into the forefront for the purpose of killing pests, hence the name pesticides.
Next came the weed killers (herbicides) and the synthetic chemical fertilizers. Back in the 40’s this new chemical farming technology was considered
a revolutionary step forward.
The immediate results of this drastic change to chemical farming were that pests and weeds very quickly became virtually
non-existent. The yields farmers were realizing for their crops soared and corn yields, for instance soared from 26 bushels per acre in 1926 to an incredible 127 bushels in 1996. With results like that, is it any wonder the whole continent embraced this new age of chemical farming?
However, the results of pouring the subsequent millions of pounds of toxic chemicals onto North American fields combined with the short-sightedness of never having
conducted any long term testing for possible consequences soon created a recipe for disaster.
What happened next is that both insects and weeds developed a strong resistance to all these chemicals, resulting in the need (so we thought) for even stronger toxic mixes to keep them at bay. Sadly, many of these stronger agri-toxins killed everything in their path, including the soil and by the late 80’s chemical farming was starting to be looked at in a different light.
Now that we have the long term results of chemical poisoning behind us, it’s quite horrifying to note that despite the fact that
pesticide use in the US alone increased 1,000% between 1945 and 1989, crop loss almost doubled from 7 to 13%.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t the end of it, because now groundwater well poisoning was becoming evident and as testing continued in 45 US states, evidence showed pesticides in more than 16,000 wells. Further, Geological Survey data released in 1998 revealed that nearly all streams they studied contained at least one pesticide, as a result of run-off from farm fields.
Now, of course, after the fact we know that testing of foods eaten by consumers routinely shows pesticide residues and even the US Congress is starting to become concerned about the impact of the 9,700 approved agricultural toxins on the nation’s children who are ingesting enough pesticides to harm them.
Organic agriculture, on the other hand, is battling valiantly to counteract all the ill effects of years of chemical farming practices by replacing toxic chemical pesticides, herbicides and synthetic fertilizers with agricultural methods that actually improve soil fertility.
Organic farmers deal with controlling weeds and insects the way mother nature intended, with time-proven methods such as crop rotation, cultivation, mulching, manure spreading and the encouragement of “beneficials”, which are predator insects that naturally keep crop pests in check.
When you start to choose organically grown foods over chemical farming and couple this with “certified organic” food processing practices, which avoids the many harmful preservatives and additives, this adds up to a far superior product, which in turn means a far superior source of nutrition for you and your family.
In a landmark study of USDA pesticide residue data, for instance, Consumers Reports found “organic foods had consistently minimal or
non-existent pesticide residue” when compared to conventional produce.
So, the next time you’re thinking about passing up the “certified organic grown & processed” box of cereal, for instance, because it costs a little bit more, remember that the small organic farmers are working hard toward restoring our health by using organic farming practices and it’s going to take a little while to get all the other “big boys” on track.
Also, the more times you choose to buy certified organic produce or products, not only will you become healthier, but the lower the cost will become, and this will send a very strong message to the manufacturers who still insist on poisoning our food source.
Remember, even the smallest person can make a difference.
TIP: If you’re looking for a tasty and healthy certified organic cereal, look for
Nature’s Path the next time you’re cruising the grocery isles.
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