Hybrid Farming and a Sustainable Future

             Which is more sustainable: conventional agriculture or organic agriculture? Depending on who you ask, you might receive answers like: “Conventional!  Organic farming uses more acreage and is more expensive in the marketplace”; or “Organic! Conventional farming poses an environmental threat by releasing greenhouse gases, using up water resources, and diminishing biodiversity.” Looking into the future, many scientists favor organic farming for its minimal environmental impact. But questions still remain about whether organic farming can produce enough food to provide food security to the growing global population. In other words, can organic food feed the world?

            A recent study, conducted by researchers from McGill University and the University of Minnesota, seems to raise doubts about the possibility of an organic world food system.  It found that the yields from organic agriculture were generally smaller (25% lower) than those gathered from conventional agricultural practices, especially for cereal crops. However, the yield gap was found to be much smaller for certain crops in optimal growing conditions like legumes (soybeans) and perennials (fruits). In other words, the yield gap between organic and conventional farming varies widely across crop types, species, and growing conditions. At best, organic farming produces a 13% lower yield even when using best management practices.

            With these results, the study suggests that to provide a sustainable, secure, global food system, we will need to utilize many different farming techniques including both organic and conventional farming systems as well as hybrid systems “to produce more food at affordable prices, ensure livelihoods to farmers, and reduce the environmental costs of agriculture.”

            These results are not entirely shocking, but the study does reveal an underlying issue surrounding the debate over organic versus conventional farming. When we look at the question in such black-and-white terms, the real goal--creating a sustainable food system—becomes subordinate to an ideological clash.  Do you believe in saving the environment or creating more food for the growing world population? When determining the benefits of different farming systems, yields and environmental impacts are only a small part of the broader economic, social, and environmental factors that affect farming. Perhaps it is time to begin to see the bigger picture.

“Instead of asking if food is organically grown, maybe we should be asking if it’s sustainably grown,” noted one researcher.  “By combining organic and conventional practices in a way that maximizes food production and social good while minimizing adverse environmental impacts, we can create a truly sustainable food system.”