Organic is Better for the Planet | Soil Association

Better for the Planet
Why is organic better for the planet?
There is a climate emergency - we have less than ten years to change our behaviour to prevent catastrophic global heating. However,the way we eat and farm can make a world of difference.
Did you know that adopting nature-friendly farming, along with other key changes to our food systems, could help keep global warming below 2°C?
Agroecological farming systems, like organic, are intended to sustain the health of soils, ecosystemsand people, working within nature’s cyclesand producing food in ways that do not harm the environment.
There are multiple benefits of organic farming for the planet– organic farms:
If Europe’s farmland all followed organic principles, agricultural emissions could drop by 40-50% by 2050, with plenty to feed the growing population healthy diets.
Organic farms use less energy, and tend to have loweremissions:
On average, organic farms use less energy than non-organic farms. This is because organicstandardsencouragefarmersto ‘close the loop’, making use of what’s to hand and limiting the use ofimported resources. It’s this respect for the natural world and ability to work with naturethat makes organic farming better for the planet:
Organic farming reduces greenhouse gas emissions by severely restricting the use of manufactured chemical fertilisers, whichare often imported from abroad andcome from burning fossil fuels. Instead, farmers relyon natural fertilisers,which can be sourced locally or from their own farmlike green manures,animal manures and ‘cover crops’ to fix nutrients, as well as crop rotations.
GM animal feed is banned under organic standards. Most non-organic British chickens, pigs and cows are fed with GM crops, like maize and soya, whichare imported from abroad.Organic cows must be fed a minimum of 60% grass-based diet, rather thanother feeds like cereals and soya, which are often imported.
Organic farming reduces nitrogen pollution:
The creation of artificial fertilisers consumes 3-5% of all global natural gas; this fossil fuel-reliant system has been a quick fix for producing more food but has come at a huge cost to nature, climate and human health.
How is organic different?
Banning the use of synthetic nitrogen fertilisers in organic systems lowers the risk ofenvironmental pollutionfrom farming. Nitrogen fertilisers can create ‘ocean dead zones’ which deprive life below water of vital oxygen.
Organic soils store more carbon:
Did you know that our soils store more carbon than the atmosphere, andall ofthe world’s plants and forests combined? Healthy soils are one of our most important weaponsin the fight against climate change.
Healthy soils ‘sequester’, or store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, drawing it down throughphotosynthesizing organisms liketrees and plants,andstoring it as ‘soil organic carbon’.
Organic farming is based ontaking care of the soil,nourishing the soilwith composts,manureand regular rotations,and keeping it coveredwith different crops throughout the year. This helps build 'soil organic carbon', and as a result, organic farming stores more carbon - on average, nearly 2 tonnes more per football-pitch sized area!
Images:Left - soils left uncovered and unprotected can erode or wash away during flooding and extreme weather conditions.
The ‘whole system’ approach of organic farming and food product means farming in a way that respects all areas involved in our food systems.
Closing the loop bymaking use of what’s to hand, like manures and compost instead of artificialfertilisers, means fewerpolluting inputs imported from abroad, and healthier soils that capture and store more carbon.
These factors make agroecological farming,like organic, a powerful tool in our efforts to mitigate for, and slow down climate change.
Organic soils are around 25% more effective at storing carbon in the long-term, with soil carbon increasing on average by 2.2% per year after converting to organic.
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