For me there are 2 main reasons why we should consider going organic. The first is for our own health reasons. Is organic food good for us? There are many arguments both for and against the benefits of organic foods. The second reason to go 0rganic is for the health and wellbeing of our environment.

There is no question that organic food is certainly good for the environment and this article is list some of the many benefits that organic processes have to offer. But back to the main sticking point, is organic food more healthy than conventional foods. Having thought about organic gardening for some time, this is an area that I have looked into in detail. What I found was that there is little, but some evidence that organic foods are healthier.

• Organic foods have been proven to have less chemicals & pesticides & nitrates than conventional foods. Nitrates are believed to be the cause of some cancers
• Organic & whole grain foods have been proven to have higher levels of phytochemicals. These chemicals can help reduce the risk of heart disease & cancer
• Organic foods are believed to have higher levels (only slightly) of Vit C, Mg, Iron & Potassium
• Organic foods have less additives, fatty acids, colourings and toxins

The biggest difference between organic and non-organic appears to be the absence of nitrates from organic foods. This is certainly a health benefit but is not the answer to our 21st century health problems.

The other benefit of organic gardening and avoidance of chemicals on our foods is that we avoid consuming chemicals of which we are unsure of their consequence on our bodies. Organic foods are also a move away from GM foods and other intensively produced foods such as battery farmed chickens & supercrops.
Regarding the benefits of organic gardening & farming to the environment there is no question, organic is the way to go.

The main principals of organic gardening revolve around a sustainable system where the soil, flora & fauna are protected and considered at every step throughout the process.

The benefits of organic gardening to the environment include...

• Increase in biodiversity & retention of natural habitats
• Less chance of development of invasive species
• Soil conversion
• Clean waterways
• Less Fertiliser production (major cause of CO²)
• Less waste and more use of renewable fertilisers & energy

When reading through the list of benefits above it would appear to make perfect sense for us all to go organic tomorrow. The down side however is that is can be less productive than conventional farming.

The yield per acre of land is generally significantly lower than that farmed by conventional methods. The result of this is that many farmers would not consider changing their entire farming operation only to yield less returns off the land they have nurtured for decades. The second and more pressing issues is that if we were all to go organic tomorrow there would not be enough arable land on earth to feed the population.

This last sobering point is where we stand today, with our reliance on beef & livestock production which takes up 70% of all agricultural land and is the cause of 18% of all greenhouse emissions we are unable to feed ourselves in a sustainable or organic way. The result being that we continue to chip away at and destroy or environment, ozone layer and personal health.