There were 935,450 acres of certified organic farmland in 1992 – the most up to date data (from 2011) shows there are5.,383,119 certified acres today– a nearly sixfold increase in land coverage.
This change is thanks to changing consumer taste coupled with environmental concerns, and it means that organic fruits and vegetables are readily available – if a little more expensive than ‘regular’ products.
Modern agriculture has had to adapt to keep pace with the demand for organic. We take a look at how the landscape has changed to accommodate the demand for organic.
How Much Do Organic Farmers Grow?
有机农业侧重于在优质的土壤中生产可持续的环保作物。因此，它并不像现代农业的其他方法那么激烈。
This means that the crop yield is19％至25％lower than a comparable farm using conventional methods. To achieve the same crop yield as regular modern agriculture, considerably more land would be needed by an organic farmer.
Despite this, organic farms are around 35% more profitable than conventional farms.
And because the organic process is more labor-intensive, they use more people to do the work, creating more jobs.
Where Do Organic Farms Source Their Seeds?
Any organic农场种子need to be acquired from an organic source that ensures they’re not genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
这是一个基本要求 - 如果植物本身不是有机的，则没有有机农业过程。
It’s serious business – and records, such as the欧洲图书馆种子图书馆，充当农民的资源检查有机种子可用性。
如果农民使用错误的种子，他们的作物的价值可能会导致错误率骤降。
Growing Different Varieties of the Same Plants
现代农业挑选出每种水果和蔬菜的“最喜欢的”类型，并完全生长它们。这就是为什么在您当地的超市，您将找到一排近乎相同的莴苣和西红柿。
但是雷奥洛姆作物越来越受欢迎，非常感谢有机农业，这喜欢种植许多不同类型的同一植物。
Tomatoes are a good example. The classic tomato we see every day is red, but you can actually grow yellow, purple, pink and orange varieties of the plant. These are known as'召开游戏'品种在沙拉中看起来很漂亮。
但他们不仅仅是一个看起来不错的新颖性。促进作物生物多样性实际上增加了整个食物链的生物多样性细菌通过哺乳动物。
这不仅仅是陷入不同的植物品种，恰好是吸引不同的生物。现代农业方法倾向于利用许多密集的杂草实践和无机农药和肥料。
杂草在有机系统中没有完全消除，只是远离农作物。这增加了周边地区的生物多样性。
Natural Crop Sprays
It’s a myth that organic farming uses no pesticides or fertilizers. But instead of synthetic chemical-based sprays, it only uses sprays which arederived from natural sources。
That said, they still need to be used with caution – they’re not necessarily non-toxic, but分解得更快than their synthetic counterparts.
This means that they won’t hang around in the soil or on the plants forever. Conventional modern agriculture uses commercial pesticides that can last in the soil for years. They may also leach into water, which can cause massive problems.
DDT was one of the first chemicals used widely as a pesticide. When it washed off crops it ran into nearby bodies of water where it poisoned animals.
As predators ate prey affected by the chemical, it built up in their bodies too. And so on, up the food chain. Thechemical was eventually banned遵循对其对环境影响的担忧。
It caused bald eagle populations to plummet due to thinning eggshells, as one example – and there were worries that it could start to affect human health too.
Organic sprays are no less likely to leach into nearby rivers or lakes, but since they break down faster, they are much less likely to cause a lasting issue.
更好的土壤质量
由于覆盖物，粪肥或腐烂的有机物质作为有机农业的腐烂，粪便，土壤，土壤保持其水分较长。
如上所述,因为喷雾分解快there are fewer concerns about chemicals lingering in the soil. The upshot is better quality soil that plants find it easier to thrive in.
In other modern agriculture, soils are still looked after, but to a lesser extent. Non-organic farmers undertake practices such as crop rotation to allow soils to regain nutrient content – though it’s worth pointing out that organic farmers do this as well.
What this means is that they grow different crops in the same field year after year. Different plants have different needs, so controlling what grows where is really important, or the nutrients in the soil will all be ‘used up’.
这种技术存在其他几个好处，如疾病和害虫预防。
Modern Agriculture Is Utilizing Renewable Energy
echosgreen and renewable energy与有机农业心态合适。一些农民特别是玉米，特别是制备乙醇– acarbon-neutralfuel.
一些农民还在安装风力涡轮机以产生电力 - 两者都是他们的农场和其他消费者。在现代农业中，多元化业务的价值不能低估。糟糕的一年和糟糕的作物产量会导致主要的财务问题。
On other farms, sustainable approaches如太阳能are used. Incredibly, one Australian farm is growing tomatoesin the middle of the desert, using just seawater and solar power!
你吃有机吗？
There are many reasons to go organic, from environmental concerns to a belief that it’s better for your diet. It’s even been proposed that the system holds the key to feeding the world and combating global warming.
然而，arguments remain它仍然不那么高效，标准农民旨在充分强制执行。
What do you think? Do you eat organic? If not, would you ever make the change?
