Organic Farming Reflective Essay

Joyce M. BrownProfessor Colova: Global SeminarFAMU Spring 2011 –Organic Farming

ORGANIC FARMING

Looking back on the case study of Organic Farming, it seems that people around the world look

at this issue of organic farming so differently according to their station in life. As we have seen

in our research of the issue or questions of Can we feed the world growing organic foods ? Is the

organic market a growing or shrinking market? We also found there were questions like can a

product or a food be called organic if it was modified by a similar plant or food?

CAN WE FEED THE WORLD WITH ORGANIC FARMING

There is always more than one way of doing things. Organic farming offers an alternative to the

way food is grown currently. Organic farming is a way of working with the whole ecosystem to

preserve and cultivate the land for future generations. Organic farmers know that taking care of

the land will benefit them in the long run and are less likely to participate in farming processes

that cause:

loss of topsoil

toxic runoff and resulting water pollution

soil contamination and poisoning

death of insects, birds, critters and beneficial soil organisms

When you start with small communities and help people understand the value of preserving and

stop wasting so much then the society as a whole benefits. Can you feed the world with organic

farming alone? No but you can make a great difference in the way people think about what they

eat and battle the obesity problem, along with getting people to understand their connection to

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the land . This way of farming , living and thinking will also help attitudes that support selfish,

and greedy behavior.

HEALTHY LIVING

One of the reasons people are embracing organic farming is because people are beginning to

understand that they have to take their health seriously. People are learning that they have

control over their health. Healthy living is not just about the foods people eat but also the

products people use and whether or not what people are using is environmentally sound. People

are turning to their communities to solve their problems together. One of the positive things that

happened when Obama was elected is the spirit that We Can. The whole idea that people can do

more than they ever believed. Organic farming needs more labor its true but it is a way to

create low impact but rewarding jobs for the hard to place job categories of workers not limited

to but including :

Chemically injured

At-risk youth

Welfare families

Homeless

Mentally challenged non-violent

Rehabbing substance abusers

This is one way of creating healthier communities. Other benefits in this green movement

include, many people wanting to grow their own gardens or wanting to participate in

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community gardens. It has also opened up new opportunities for teens and other youth to

have gainful employment.

ORGANIC MARKET GROWING

The organic market is growing, and the misconception that people have around the world is

that it is not sustainable and to expensive. Organic farming can be sustainable starting on

small scales. The opinion of many as expressed via our teleconference is that organic farming

is for the rich and well to do. This is not true as in many forms of research in this world and

our country they often overlook entire cultures and people of different levels of living

because they don’t fit neatly into any one category. The reality is that many low income and

poor have decided to eat healthier and live healthier lives. The method of operation of these

folks that you won’t find in the statistics vary but you will find some do not eat meat because

of way livestock is being handled today, some will not eat foods that are not grown

organically even if it means they eat less. Many have their own gardens and will only grown

organically. So the organic market is not shrinking is not going away.

SUMMARY

In conclusion farming itself is hard work for not a lot of payback at all and organic farming is

even harder. The crops that are yielded by organic farming are often small. Still the search

for methods of earth friendly farming is on the rise. Organic farming speaks to that. The

amount of waste that happens each day in the US is astronomical. Organic farming helps

take care of some of that waste. There is also a lot of greed from the merchants and everyone

involved in the food system in many different levels from the production of support products

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to farming and everything involved in the process of bringing the food from the ground to the

table. People want to live healthier and many are taking their health starting with what they

eat, into their own hands so the organic farming is coming into demand by consumers. There

will always be farming with pesticides and GMO’s because of the yield and profit margins.

Organic farming is on the rise and has America taking notice. Other countries are also using

more organic farming, but are very uncertain about its sustainability.

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Organic Farming Reflective Essay