Posted by Matthew Lee at 02/03/2013

Howdy everyone,

I am curious to hear some opinions on the pros and cons of organic farming compared to conventional farming. During the summer I work/cultivate for an organic farmer on my father’s land. My primary job is to cultivate soybeans, corn and milo fields after they have been planted. This process leads me cultivate the same field up to 3-4 times, depending on the amount of moisture. I feel that driving the tractor over the land that many extra times is harmful to the environment, plus it adds a lot of extra work. Conventional farmers would simply spray their fields once with fertilizer and later harvest the crop, decreasing the amount of fuel used. But, it is my belief that synthetic fertilizer is harmful to the farmers using it and the consumers when we eat it. My boss gets his fertilizer from organic cattle manure, which I think is a better option.

I have read some articles stating that organic farm yields are much lower than conventional farms. I’m not sure if that’s true or not. If true, it would be difficult to feed the world’s population if every farm was organic. Any thoughts or comments?

Matthew Lee