Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

permaculture - [permaculture] Organic Farming Studies

permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: permaculture

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: Saor Stetler <sstetler@earthlink.net>
  • To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [permaculture] Organic Farming Studies
  • Date: Fri, 13 Jul 2007 10:17:40 -0700 (GMT-07:00)

STUDY OF THE WEEK:
ORGANIC FARMING CAN FEED THE WORLD
A new University of Michigan study indicates that organic farming is more
productive than chemical and energy intensive industrial agriculture.
Researchers noted 293 examples in previous studies that corroborate the fact
that organic farming is better than conventional, but pointed out that biased
studies funded by chemical producers have clouded the public's understanding
of the issue. Corporate agribusiness has spent decades repeating the mantra
that chemical intensive agriculture is necessary to feed the world. But
according to the new report, "Model estimates indicate that organic methods
could produce enough food on a global per capita basis to sustain the current
human population, and potentially an even larger population, without
increasing the agricultural land base." Ivette Perfecto, a professor at the
University of Michigan, said of the study, "My hope is that we can finally
put a nail in the coffin of the idea that you can't produce enough food
through organic agriculture."
Learn more: http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_5996.cfm

ANOTHER STUDY OF THE WEEK:
SCIENTISTS REVEAL THAT PESTICIDES ARE REDUCING CROP YIELDS BY ONE-THIRD
The National Academy of Sciences dropped a bombshell on the agri-toxics lobby
in June when it published a study indicating that pesticides are actually
decreasing crop yields by one-third. Specifically, pesticides are killing
important bacteria in the soil that naturally produce a useable form of
nitrogen for plants, a necessary fertilizer. As the use of chemical
pesticides has increased in the U.S., soil bacteria have been dramatically
reduced, thereby creating an insatiable demand for petroleum-based
fertilizers. In contrast, organic farming promotes a healthy living soil with
increased crop yields.
Learn more: http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_5995.cfm



  • [permaculture] Organic Farming Studies, Saor Stetler, 07/13/2007

Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page