• About Sustainable Agriculture
Let's begin with the most commonly asked question: what is sustainable agriculture?
In the simplest words, sustainable agriculture can be defined as the method of producing food, fiber, other plants, or animal products using environment-friendly farming techniques.
Often, sustainable farming practices are compared to those of organic farming. However, both are different concepts. How? Well, let's get into it!
• Fundamental Differences Between Organic and Sustainable Agriculture
1. Certification
Organic farms need organic certification that is approved by the USDA. Farms adopting sustainable practices do not require any certification. It would be apt to say that Sustainable farming is a way of life.
2. Animal Welfare
Organic animal farmers often confine animals and curb their natural habitat.
In a sustainable system, animals are permitted to carry out their natural behaviors, like rooting, pecking, or grazing. This makes sustainable methods more humane!
3. Antibiotics
Although antibiotics should not be fed to organic-certified livestock, there is no legal restriction on them in sustainable farming. Many farmers using sustainable practices do not use any antibiotics at all, but some may do so to treat their animals.
The milk and meat of these animals that are given antibiotics are not used for human consumption until the antibiotics leave the animals’ systems.
4. Artificial Hormones
No artificial hormones are used in either organic farming or sustainable agriculture.
5. Corporate Involvement
Not all organic food needs to be grown on a small farm. Large corporations can produce it too. While sustainable food production is carried out only by small farmers and families on the land where they farm.
6. The size of the farm
Organic farming is not limited to a small farm, while sustainable farming is. This is why sustainable farming practices are perfect for home gardeners looking to start their own produce farm!
7. Food Miles
Organic certification does not take into account the use of fossil fuels that can contaminate your food once it is on the way. While, sustainable food, is distributed and sold near the farm.
Explore Ugaoo's Range of Premium Organic Fertilizers
• Benefits and Importance of Sustainable Farming
- Crops grown through sustainable agriculture are healthier than their commercially grown counterparts. The minimal use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers makes them a better fit for human consumption!
- The products are nutritious because of the minimal synthetic material.
- Sustainable agriculture uses 30% less energy per unit of crop yield in comparison to industrialized farming.
- Substantially reduces reliance on fossil fuels.
- This kind of sustainable agriculture also increases the area's biodiversity by providing a variety of organisms with healthy, natural environments.
- For successful sustainable agriculture, water management is key. In such situations, rain and irrigation water management can bring a positive result.
- Conservation of crop diversity is important where high-yielding fertilizers for hybrid crops have led to the loss of land varieties.
- The use of organic matter or beneficial soil organisms will help produce a nutrition cycle and a better result which otherwise has been downgraded by conservation tillage.
- Last but not least, in place of nourishment-supplying agents which are widely used in modern-day agriculture as fertilizers; sustainable agriculture makes use of renewable resources to maintain soil quality and improve plant health.
Essentially, sustainable farming practices are crucial for ensuring your planet's long-term health and food systems.
By embracing different types of sustainable agriculture, you can balance productivity with environmental stewardship, conserve resources, and promote biodiversity. Even the smallest effort might just spark the biggest ripple of change!
So, start today and ensure a healthy, happy, and thriving planet for the people of today and tomorrow!
Also read about the different ways to prepare healthy garden soil
