Another Myth Exploded: Organics Reduce Yields

This story about conversion of rice paddies to organics, if accurate, represents a significant finding.

"The yield of 2.5 tonne per acre is equal to that of the paddy cultivated using the conventional method since there was no drop in productivity as has been commonly believed, M.V. Rajendran, President of the Adat Farmers' Cooperative Bank, told Business Line."

We're constantly told, with no data whatsoever to confirm, that yields are higher with pesticide and fertilizer-treated soil than with organics. One reason the assertion has been difficult to challenge is lack of data. The petroleum industry has distorted the situation so effectively that the default assumption is to discourage farmers from switching, because they won't make as much money. So few farmers have been willing to take the plunge, historically. With organic sales booming, however, that's starting to change. If you've noticed produce marked "transitional" in Whole Foods or Puget Consumers Co-op (or equivalent), you are witnessing a switchover.

The killer point with this story is that farmers actually stand to make more money with equivalent yields from organics, because organics traditionally fetch higher prices at market. As I've written before, I expect that to change (or at least narrow to insignificance) with many items, but for now it's pure gravy.

It takes time to collect data through this process, however. Which is why this story is so telling.

So the next time you see a reference in a news story or TV show about reduced yields with organic farming, follow up asking the source what they're basing their information on. Don't expect the corporate media to report it any time soon, though. It's not something their advertisers would like to see.

--Paul Andrews, GreenforGood

Organic Sales Continuing to Boom

This from the Organic Trade Association. Pretty dramatic numbers, especially when you measure by category. Here's the deal: Organics represent a tiny tiny fraction of overall food sales, it's true. But they are erupting at Vesuvian levels. Meat up 55 percent year to year, pet food 46 percent, dairy 23.5 percent.

Extrapolate those kinds of growth figures over the next 5 years and you start to see staggering potential for the Green Revolution. Because organics represent only a narrow slice of living green, but organics' growth should prove concomitant with green growth.

Pretty amazing. We're entering a whole new era, folks.

-- Paul Andrews, GreenforGood