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Criticisms and Frequent Misconceptions about Organic Agriculture: The Counter-Arguments |
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Misconception Number 15: Because there are many areas of the world where farmers can’t grow particular crops organically (e.g., due to substantial pest populations and particularly aggressive weeds), consumers often resort to purchasing imported crops that travel great distances just because they want organic. This becomes even more polluting to the environment than consuming local non-organic products. Consumers should rather focus on seeking local products than organic products.
Summary of Counter-Arguments:
- Generally, if local constraints are insurmountable to organic farmers, they are very likely to be also uneconomically viable for conventional farmers and/or extremely negative for the environment due to massive use of pesticides.
- Buying a majority of organic products and buying local whenever possible is the best strategy for a sustainable personal lifestyle.
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Details of Counter-Arguments:
Conventional agriculture
also has regional constraints. Just because you can use pesticides and
herbicides doesn’t mean that you can grow anything anywhere easily. A
consumer who is eager to purchase food as locally as possible should be
aware of the specific production constraints faced by conventional
farmers. Generally, if the local
constraints are insurmountable to organic farmers, they are very likely to
be also uneconomically viable for conventional farmers and/or extremely
negative for the environment due to massive use of pesticides. In
Organic Agriculture, the problems associated with substantial pest
populations and aggressive weeds are reduced by the implementation of a
more diversified cropping system.
For
animal production, “local”
conventionally raised livestock are often not as local as consumer may
think. A local conventional pig breeder in the US may get feed from Argentina, grown with inputs from Europe, whereas an organic local farmer (e.g., 100
km away) provides his or her animals with home-grown fodder or with fodder
from neighboring farms. This is generally a requirement of organic
standards. For example, the IFOAM Basic Standards state that “the
prevailing part (at least more than 50%) of the feed shall come from the
farm unit itself or be produced in co-operation with other organic farms
in the region.”
It is obviously an
environmentally friendly practice to consume local products whenever
possible. If one is used to the good taste of local in-season organic fruits
and vegetables, there is less incentive to purchase imported off-season
produce, as the taste is inferior (even if organic) because this produce
is often picked unripe in order to be able to travel un-perished to
markets far away.
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