Organic farming uses traditional methods such as green manure, biological pest control, composting, ridge tilling and crop rotation rather than synthetic chemicals or genetically modified (GMO) seeds to produce food. Simply put, organic farming can prevent global hunger because it has the capacity to achieve high food yields in impoverished areas with low financial investment. Organic farming is efficient, cost-effective and affordable for farmers in developing nations. It also provides more jobs and leads to self-sufficiency.

Using green manure is a simple and cheap way for farmers in developing countries to improve their soil. Green manure is actually a cover crop planted as seeds to increase the nutrients and organic matter of soil. Some examples of green manure are clover, vetch, alfalfa, buckwheat, mustard, fenugreek, lupin, oats and rye. The aim is to improve and protect the soil by growing green manure and then plowing it under. Increasing organic matter, or biomass, leads to better water retention and aeration. Green manure also suppresses weed growth, soil erosion and compaction. Another advantage of green manure is that it can be used as forage for pollinators, whose free services are vital in the production of most vegetables and fruits. Animal manure from livestock can also be used in organic farming, but there is always a danger of transmitting pathogens like E. coli to food if it is not properly composted.

Despite the claims of those who support conventional chemical-intensive farming or GMO farming that growth hormones, synthetic pesticides, and food irradiation are all necessary to produce sufficient crops, a number of recent studies indicate that organic farming can produce more food for the world’s poor. Encouraging farmers in poor nations to use traditional organic methods can lead to higher crop yields of 70% or more. These methods are also better for wildlife, water quality, air quality and food safety. In contrast, chemical-intensive agriculture inevitably leads to loss of topsoil, a decrease in soil fertility, water contamination and loss of genetic diversity.

The problem with underlying global hunger is not that there is not enough food or land for everyone on the planet. Rather, the problem lies in suboptimal food distribution methods, poor farming techniques, and such factors as political corruption, civil wars and droughts, particularly in Africa. Sustainable organic farming reduces or eliminates the need to buy expensive imported food from other countries, and the crops will retain more nutrients because of organic farming techniques and the fact that they are locally grown and consumed. According to a researcher who spoke recently at an international conference on Organic Agriculture and Food Security sponsored by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, organic farmers also rely less on fossil fuels, and their naturally grown, hardier crops are more resistant to climate change.

Low financial input costs mean that farmers don’t need to purchase costly imported fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides. The increase in crop yields translates into lower production costs and more profits. Organic farming is more labor-intensive and provides jobs and incomes for the community, raising the standard of living for all involved and giving formerly impoverished citizens purchase power.

In Europe, North America, Australia and Brazil, less food is being grown—which means exported food prices will rise—due to the conversion of arable land into the production of biofuels and genetically modified crops to create non-food items like hormones, vaccines and plastics. Organic farming is more important than ever because poorer countries won’t be able to afford the resulting costlier food imports.

Global hunger can be controlled if not eliminated by the use of sustainable organic farming. Small-scale organic farming experimentation is already under way in South America, Central America, Mexico, Asia, and Africa, with increased yields of maize, wheat, rice, coffee and other crops. It’s an ancient, eco-friendly system of agriculture that can potentially save millions of lives in the 21st century.

www.rawfoodinfo.com/articles/art_orgagricendhunger.html