Biodynamic Vs Organic In Farming, Agriculture, And Food Production: Yield And Resilience

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This article explores the distinction between organic and biodynamic agriculture. Most people are more familiar with the term "organic", when applied to food or farming, as this term has entered the mainstream. The term "biodynamic" is less familiar, although it is most familiar in the area of wine. Both of these systems of farming aim to promote sustainability by reducing the use of synthetic, chemical inputs which can potentially be harmful to the environment and to human health. However, as this article explains below, biodynamic agriculture goes a lot farther than organics towards achieving this goal.

Both organic and biodynamic have certification systems:

Biodynamic certification is carried out primarily through a single organization, called Demeter International, an umbrella organization that has member organizations in the individual countries where certification is carried out. Because the certification is run by a single organization, biodynamic certification is more standardized globally than organic certification.

Organic certification is run by a variety of different agencies. In most industrialized countries, including the U.S., Canada, the European Union, and Japan, the organic label is defined and regulated by the government. In other countries, organic certification can be carried out by non-profit organizations. Because there are different certifying agencies in different countries, the standards for organic certification differ. However, there are still some basic similarities in common between these different systems.

Biodynamic goes above and beyond organic certification:

The core idea of organic certification boils down to one idea: avoiding the use of synthetic chemical inputs, which can include herbicides, pesticides, and synthetic fertilizers like ammonia- or nitrate-based fertilizers. In this respect, organic agriculture is defined more in the negative than the positive sense: organic certification specifies what a farmer cannot do, but does less in terms of specifying good or healthy approaches to agriculture. Because organic certification does not specify much more than some restrictions on what farmers cannot do, there are many different ways of realizing organic farming.

Some organic farms stick to the letter of organic certification, following all the requirements and rules, but while maintaining the same fundamental approach of industrialized agriculture, using mass-production of crops in large monocultures, and applying fertilizers and herbicides or pesticides as one does in modern industrial farming, with the only change being the use of mixtures allowed under the organic certification systems. The gains of this sort of approach, from a sustainability standpoint, are minimal.

Biodynamic agriculture, on the other hand, takes a more holistic approach. In biodynamic agriculture, the farm is viewed as an ecosystem. Biodynamics, like organics, avoids chemical treatments, but goes even farther, promoting decentralization of production, using cover crops, crop rotation, livestock manure, composting, and open pollination combined with seed saving Each of these practices provides benefits in terms of sustainability, both creating a more positive environmental impact, and increasing the resilience of the farming operation.

The effects and yield of biodynamic agriculture vs conventional organic farming:

There are not many studies comparing biodynamic agriculture to organic-certified factory farming. However, there is a lot of research comparing biodynamic farming to conventional (non-organic) farming, and this research seems to find a common trend, which is that biodynamic farming results in slightly lower crop yields, but greatly increased soil quality and lessened environmental impact. Furthermore, biodynamic operations tend to be much more resilient to disturbances, such as changing environmental conditions or unusual weather or climate fluctuations. This is likely due to the use of ecological principles such as diversification and use of open-pollination and seed saving. And in the case of biodynamic wine, a specific topic that has been studied more, there is some evidence that the biodynamic practices result in greater quality of the grapes.

In summary:

Biodynamic agriculture goes above and beyond organic agriculture in embracing ecological principles. Biodynamic certification is more standardized than organic certification. Biodynamic farming results in lower crop yields, but greater resilience in the face of changing conditions, and a more positive impact on the environment.

Alex Zorach is the founder and editor-in-chief of RateTea, an online community where anyone can rate and review teas, with a searchable database of teas and herbal teas, classified by brand, style, and region. RateTea has a wealth of information about tea, health, sustainability, and related topics. Visit RateTea to learn more about organic tea production, or to read about other topics pertaining to tea production.

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A Few Facts About Organic Farming

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Organic farming has taken a giant hold on the farming industry in the last 20+ years. It has grown from what many thought was a fad, to--forgive the pun--much greener pastures.

So what is the hype behind organic farming? For one, there is a lack of both pesticides and herbicides. In the past, consumers didn't have much of a choice in the way their fruits and veggies were produced, and let's face it, negative results occurred. Pesticides and herbicides are not only threatening to the environment, they are directly affecting our children. Any product out in the market that is chemically enhanced is always subject to criticism, and the basic statistics show that, although this may not be as immediately profitable, it is the way to go in matters of living a healthy lifestyle.

The differences between this method and traditional farming are many. Aside from the pesticide/herbicide issue, there are a great many other reasons to consider supporting your local organic farmer (or gardener!)...

First among these, in my personal opinion, is water. Yep, water. No fruit or vegetable can grow to optimal heath without a pure water content. Farming in this method insists on having either a creek, stream or other water source to feed their crops. The most beneficial of which are heading in a decline (meaning to a lower land level, gravitationally). This will ensure that the deposits and run-off from your crops will not affect your local watering hole, so to speak.

Another is energy. Farming organically employs everything from solar power and wind energy, to a reduction in the use of inefficient energy sources overall. The estimate is that organic farmers use 25% less energy to produce crops for consumption than traditional farming methods. This means a reduction on greenhouse gases, negative effects on the ozone and a general spike in healthy eating habits. Many are turned-off from buying certain fruits and vegetable based merely on the concern of pesticide-inducement.

The research is there if you want it, but overall, traditional methods of farming are quickly becoming a thing of the past. Farmers should take the opportunity to learn and educate themselves about organic farming. It is eco-friendly, eliminates pollution, and is more oriented towards a healthy society. Although it may take up to three seasons to compete with traditional farming, after that basic hump, you are not only providing a healthy resource for yourselves and your family, you are also helping others to be involved in the organic-slash-green industry.

If you would like to learn more about organic farming and gardening, please read my Organic Farming Tips, and 'Organic Farming Benefits'.

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Is Organic Really Better For The Environment? And For Your Health?

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This article explores the question of whether or not organic-certified foods are really better, in the slightly more objective senses of being better for the environment, and better for human health, than non-organic foods. In order to explore and answer this question, we delve a bit into the history of organic farming, and the history of human agriculture in general.

Organic vs. traditionally produced:

The field of organic chemistry, with its synthetic chemicals, is a modern invention. For thousands of years, humans practiced agriculture, relying solely on naturally occurring chemicals in the environment around them. People used manure and compost for fertilizers, and found natural methods of pest control, such as plant-based herbicides, the use of cover crops and buffer areas, to stop the spread of pests and provide habitat for predators that would control insect populations. People used open-pollinated crops, and saved the seeds each year, thus allowing their crops to adapt to changing conditions, including a changing backdrop of pests. None of these operations were "organic certified", yet all of them would have fit the modern definition of organic farming.

Along comes synthetic chemicals:

Synthetic chemicals allowed people to move away from traditional farming methods, which were based on ecological principles. When using synthetic pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers, produced in factors, many using petroleum inputs and energy-intensive processes, farmers were able to produce greater crop yields while temporarily ignoring the ecology of the farm.

But these chemicals come with a cost. Earlier generations of chemicals, such as DDT, posed serious risks to the environment, driving some species, such as the Bald Eagle, the symbol of the United States of America, nearly to extinction, leading many of these chemicals to be banned. A number of chemicals also pose problems to human health, contributing to cancer risk as well as other diseases such as Parkinson's disease, Leukemia, and many other sinister, chronic diseases.

Organic certification:

Organic certification sets out to solve some of these problems. The idea is simple: a farmer follows a set of rules, which involves refraining from the use of certain chemical inputs for a number of years, and then the farmer's crops will be able to bear the organic label, thus fetching a higher price in the marketplace. Shoppers can look for the label, and feel peace of mind knowing that synthetic chemicals were not used in the production of their food. Sounds good, right?

Unfortunately, it's not this simple. The organic certification process is costly and complex, and can be burdensome for farmers to comply with, because of its extensive record-keeping requirements that go far above and beyond what a farmer would normally need to do in order to run a productive farming operation. The effect of this additional burden is that organic certification is more easily accessible to large-scale factory farming than it is to a small farmer with diversified crops.

Industrialized, organic factory farming vs. small-scale traditional production:

It is possible for a factory farm to comply with the letter of the organic certification rules, while ignoring the spirit of them. A factory farm may practice widespread monoculture, the growth of the same crop over a large spatial scale. They may use pesticides and fertilizers allowed in the organic system, but apply them industrially like conventional (non-organic) agriculture would.

On the other hand, a small-scale farmer, farming by traditional methods, by definition will be farming organically. But many of these farmers may choose not to go the route of organic certification because of the prohibitive costs of certification and the associated record-keeping burden. When choosing between these two setups, there is no doubt that the small farmer with diversified crops, using traditional methods is going to have a more positive impact on the environment. Yet at the store, it is the factory-farmed food that will bear the organic label.

In summary: is organic really better?

My answer to the question "Is organic really better?" is: not necessarily. Organic certification is a good idea, and all other things being equal, it is better for health and for the environment to purchase organic products. However, the organic label is not a guarantee that food has been produced in an environmentally sound manner. Many small farmers opt to avoid organic certification because it is prohibitively costly, and large-scale farms unfortunately are better able to afford this certification. It is best to balance your choice to buy organic products with a choice to buy from small farms, farming by traditional farming methods, whenever possible.

Alex Zorach is the founder and editor-in-chief of RateTea, an online community where anyone can rate and review teas, with a searchable database of teas and herbal teas, classified by brand, style, and region. Visit RateTea to learn more about organic tea production, and browse organic teas and locate companies selling organic tea.

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