Why I Don't Buy Organic, and Why You Might Not Want to Either

Well that watered-down endorsement sure inspires confidence!

In my opinion, there are many misconceptions about the practices, advantages and disadvantages of both conventional and organic farming.

First of all there are currently three modes of production that are worth of mention: 1) "conventional" farming, 2) integrated production, 3) organic farming.

Conventional farming can mean many things, depending on the country we are farming, but mainly we should interpret it as non-illegal farming in general: anything that is within regular agronomic practice for a given location and crop.

Organic Farming (OF) is the practice that, fundamentally, prohibits the usage of synthetic agrochemicals. Moreover, GMOs are also prohibited and some natural occurring fertilizers. The aim is to minimize ecological impact and respect biodiversity, and the means of achieving that goal is to radically change agricultural practices.

Integrated Production (IP) is somewhat half way between the two. The idea is to leave the usage of agrochemicals for the last case scenario (and when above the the economic threshold), when all other alternatives are not available. Pests and diseases have to be monitored and auxiliary species levels measured and maintained. The list of acceptable substances and respective dosages is regulated and depends on the crop. Soil analysis is also mandatory. There are soil maintenance practices that have to be respected. A practice register has to be filled with each year crops, and given to certification authorities along with pesticide and fertilizer stocks registries. The bonus is that whatever one is allowed to do in OG one can also do in IP, generally speaking.

Currently, in the EU, the standards of conventional farming are being raised towards IP, so that in a few years there is only either IP or OF. In other terms, conventional farming of the future EU will be what we call today IP.

The single most important aspect of either practices is that none can go without regulation and official certification. I don't really trust the way regulation is enforced these days, because it's being delegated to private companies that provide the certification for their customers.

My only issue with organic farming is the misconception that there is something wrong with synthetic fertilizers and pesticides that doesn't come with so-called organic or natural pesticides and fertilizers, and that the produce of OG is healthier in general. This is not true, although many companies benefit from this reiterated confusion. Greenwashing works better if there is a OG logo somewhere.

My second issue with organic farming is that by avoiding some means of protection, produce quality can decrease significantly, and whole crops can and will sometimes be lost without need, which comes with costs to producers but also economical consequences to food security and price volatility.

In my opinion, organic farming is only feasible in the long term with very specific crops and for medium-small scale areas.

Other than these aspects (certification, purported health benefits and insecurity) my advice to anyone is by all means eat organic whenever you want. But remember there is always Integrated Production.