I have wondered the same thing mentioned in the February 2, 2015, Hoard's Dairyman Intel item "Reader Response: Is organic sustainable?"
I have tried the organic thing on a small, 10-acre piece of land for the last few years. It is a whole new kind of farming involving crop rotation, fallowing and careful crop selection.
Organic will force you to be a better farmer, no question about it, but it is doable. In fact, I'm beginning to wonder if organic isn't the only sustainable kind of farming. In places like Iraq or China, where land has been farmed for a thousand years organically, organic has long since proven sustainable. The value of food has probably always been considerably higher than it currently is here in the U.S. though.
The author is correct to point out prices. These may have to move upward. Food is really a bargain in the U.S. and has been for my entire life.
- Kevin Manhart, Idaho
February 9, 2015
