Organic foods are certainly catching on in the United States—with sales topping $25 billion last year. Organic foods are grown without synthetic inputs—industrial fertilizer, pesticides, and herbicides. And they certainly don’t include genetically-modified crop species.
Organic food is considered to be environmentally friendly. But one recent study indicates that the yields on organic crops are between 5 to 34% lower than those on conventionally grown fields. Thus, with organic foods, we must clear about 20% more land just to break even in crop yield.
But a recent study suggests that more than half of all cancers are caused by environmental exposures—of which pesticides in food and water are likely to be a major source. That swings the argument back in favor of organic foods.
Yet another study indicates that the pesticide use that is avoided by using genetically modified crops allows a greater diversity of insects in farmlands. Without broadcast spraying, various predatory insects, which keep other insect populations at bay, can survive.
If we are to feed the world’s current population well, let alone the population of 10 billion who will be our neighbors in 2050, then conventional agriculture with genetically-modified species may be our best bet. But, if we are to feed the world’s population a diet without the risk of certain cancers, then a return to organic farming may be preferred.
As with so many environmental problems, what we choose to do depends on our values—people vs. nature, quantity vs. quality, expensive vs. cheap. With food, what we choose for the environment begins at the breakfast table each morning.
Photo, taken on October 24, 2010, courtesy of Hari Prasad Nadig via Flickr.