In the past, I’ve come across fitness bloggers advocating for grass-fed beef because of its higher nutritional value, and while they’re not wrong, the negative effects of grass-fed beef seem to fairly outweigh its benefits. Compared to conventionally bred beef (which are already part of the harmful chain of animal agriculture), grass-fed beef have even higher greenhouse gas emissions and land use (as more forests must be cut down to make space for grazing). We saw really good examples of this in Cowspiracy, where the family farm of grazing cows are stating the humongous area that their cows are occupying like they don’t mean anything. In Cowspiracy, we also learned that the excessive North American diet takes up significantly more land than a vegan diet or mostly plant-based diet. In some aspects, the organic approach is the same: it benefits a select group of people who have the luxury of paying for costly organic produce at the sacrifice of taking up more land and emitting more methane. I think the notion of organic foods have been painted in an exaggerated manner, and their costly nature makes it more of a luxury for the elite instead of a commodity for the people. We shouldn’t be consuming these products if it comes at the expense of sacrificing precious land that we‘re losing so fast these days.
For this week, I’m envisioning a future where the notion of “Organic” doesn’t exist. There wouldn’t be a difference between conventional or unconventional farming, because every crop would be farmed in the same sustainable way that feeds back into the land.In my envisioned future, Earth’s population size would have diminished, with every person well educated about the environmental costs of agriculture and a good system that is built on pillars of sustainability instead of profit. As such, the burden that our land will have to bear is much less, and it can support every organism in a well balanced circle of life.
We can act on a daily basis to help. Since the state of the environment should be everyone’s priority, I believe we should choose our groceries in a way that limits the negative effects on our land. We can act specifically by:
doing more research to find out which organic produce takes up the most land
supporting farms that are doing more polycultures
lower consumption of products that use an excessive amount of land (ex. grass-fed beef)
Individual action alone will not be enough. In order to bring about large-scale change, the incentives of the agricultural industry needs to change. Too many people choose annual crops because there aren’t enough loans or subsidies that would support them to farm perennial crops.
This is an interesting idea! Maybe the issue is with our system is that we use an unhelpful dichotomy, and need to change the rule book. I think what you're saying is that all food production should utilize more organic methodology...either way, it is interesting to rethink the perspective that we approach the issues from.
Hi Lisa, thanks for your post. I'm not sure that completely stepping away from organic farming is the best way forward. Conventional agriculture harms nature in so many ways, that I think this shouldn't be our only option. Furthermore, reduction is key. 20% of produced food is not consumed but goes to waste every year (VCMI, 2019). If we are more mindful with that, maybe we don't even need extra space for organic?
I really like the idea of not having to have separate organic foods in the future. I think a lot of the reason to buy organic comes from knowing what might be on or in the food is better regulated that inorganic and there is concern about pesticide consumption. I think if non organic food had stricter regulations on sustainability and use of potentially harmful chemicals that would eliminate the need for organic vs non organic food.
I agree with you, and sometimes I wonder if organic food is really better for the environment. Organic farming is far less productive than conventional farming, so more land is needed to meet the demand.
Hi Lisa
I love your idea of not having to distinguish between organic and non-organic, and I think this easily applies to other areas of our food too. Wouldn't it be nice if we wouldn't have to stop and think about, or research, or struggle to choose between grass-fed beef or not, local or not, processed or not....because the answer would be what is most sustainable is the only product available to us. I would think that simplifying our food-purchasing choices would mean that sustainable food intake would happen automatically on a daily basis!
Hi Lisa, I agree that organic doesn't always equal best. The costs and luxury value of organic do need to be worked upon.
Hi Lisa,
What an insightful post! Thank you for sharing the example of grass-fed beef. I feel that many of us can relate to being pressurized through social media to purchase organic food including labels like grass-fed beef. I was not aware that grass-fed beef tends to lead to higher greenhouse gas emissions. I like your approach of there being no idea of organic so that every crop if farmed in a sustainable manner.
Hi, I agree with the idea of reducing the environmental cost of agriculture. Some of people I know have spent too much on the organic food with an incentive of organic=green, and green somehow means environmental-friendly. However, it seems that the truth is not as we thought and we have to do something to fix it. From my perspective, it is crucial to inform the public what it costs in environment and climate for producing organic agricultural products and the productions might be restricted to a certain level for less carbon emissions.
A very insightful post! It's really a shame that the realities of agriculture and farming aren't taught and discussed more. Hopefully if the amount of education on the topic increases, more large-scale interventions will follow.
I think if we are to sustain a growing population we need a cultural shift towards a more plant based diet. This doesnt mean we need to entirely rid our diets of meat, just hold off, maybe 2-3 times a week. People always seem to cry "you wont get enough protein" but there are plants with very high protein content, even though it may less bioavailable to humans.
Hi Lisa! You made such a great point about how organic food is seen as a luxury for the elite rather than a commodity for the people. Eating organic feels nearly impossible just because it IS so costly and unattainable, I think it would be really interesting to see how consumption habits change if we remove the whole "organic" title because everything would be farmed the same
Your title is very obvious to show your perspective. Organic food required more resources, the sustainable food from polyculture farms is our future. Great post!
Hey Lisa! I really liked the points you raised here. Organic shouldn't only be considered a "luxury." Sometimes when we hear things like "grass fed beef" it is immediately thought that it is better- when this isnt always the case. It reminds me a lot of the greenwashing concept we learned about a few lectures back!