Organic vs Conventional farming

Written by: Caroline Kim

May 8, 2022

In continuation of last week’s post, I thought I’d look into more about farming techniques. This week we’re talking about organic vs conventional farming, the pros, the cons, and what you should know.

Conventional farming techniques often incorporate fertilizers, and other chemicals such as herbicides and pesticides when growing crops. In contrast, organic methods would turn to methods such as composting, setting traps, and hand picking weeds (It's Easy Being Green). Though there is debate about how much healthier organic food truly might be, the environmental benefits from organically grown food are definitive. “According to USDA guidelines, organic farming practices are designed to reduce pollution and conserve water and soil. They do not release synthetic pesticides, which can harm wildlife, and they also seek to preserve biodiversity and local ecosystems” (It's Easy Being Green). However, organically grown food does tend to be more costly due it being more labor intensive (It's Easy Being Green). Some other benefits might include include higher nutritional value, better taste, healthier, and sustainability; on the downside, organic farming may be less productive, require more skill, be more costly, and lack some of the perks of GMO’s (which can be referenced in last week’s post) (Rinkesh). On the flip side, conventional farming has the benefits of higher yield at lower costs, but includes the cons of health and environmental hazards (Miller). Overall, there are some pros and cons on both sides, but perhaps the solution isn’t one sided: a strategically combined use of conventional/organic farming may result in the most beneficial and safe outcome.

(Image from: “Organic vs Conventional - the Most Sustainable Is ?: Arc2020.” Agricultural and Rural Convention, 24 May 2018, https://www.arc2020.eu/organic-vs-conventional-which-is-the-most-sustainable/.)

Sources:

“It's Easy Being Green: Organic vs. Conventional Foods-the Gloves Come Off.” Center for American Progress, 22 Apr. 2010, https://www.americanprogress.org/article/its-easy-being-green-organic-vs-conventional-foods-the-gloves-come-off/#:~:text=Conventional%20farming%20uses%20chemical%20fertilizers,%2C%20mating%20disruption%2C%20or%20traps.

Rinkesh. “What Is Organic Farming and Pros and Cons of Organic Farming.” Conserve Energy Future, 25 Dec. 2016, https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/pros-and-cons-organic-farming.php.

“Organic vs Conventional - the Most Sustainable Is ?: Arc2020.” Agricultural and Rural Convention, 24 May 2018, https://www.arc2020.eu/organic-vs-conventional-which-is-the-most-sustainable/.

Miller, Brandon. “7 Pros and Cons of Conventional Farming.” Green Garage, 16 Dec. 2019, https://greengarageblog.org/7-pros-and-cons-of-conventional-farming.