The Environment Series Part 2: Organic Farming and Climate Change

Because of climate change droughts will occur with greater frequency

We can no longer deny the adverse effects of global warming, especially the effect on food security and agriculture. Climate change leads to changes in weather patterns, including increased occurrences of drought, flooding, and insect infestations. This spells out bad news for feeding the world's growing population because crop yields will drop significantly. Ironically, conventional agriculture contributes about 30% of greenhouse gasses, making agriculture a significant contributor to climate change. The bulk of the gasses is not emitted through operating tractors or other machinery, but through the use of petroleum in fertilizers and pesticides. According to an article written by Anna Lappe, synthetic nitrogen fertilizer releases large amounts of nitrous oxide, a primary threat to the ozone layer, into the atmosphere. This may be reason enough to highlight organic agriculture as a powerful tool to decrease greenhouse gas emissions, but there are many other ways that organic farming methods contribute to mitigating the adverse global warming.

NO₂: (nitrous oxide): Because of methods like crop rotation, which alternates the planting of legumes with regular crops, the soil is rich with nitrogen and less escapes to the atmosphere because of the improvement in soil structure. Organic agriculture soil is also more aerated, and have lower free nitrogen concentrations.

CH₄: (methane) Biomass isn't burned, so this gas isn't released into the air. However, some scientists argue that organic farming requires more cows so more methane released. More research is being done in bio gas and composting as a method to lower methane gas.

CO₂: (carbon dioxide) In a study conducted by the Rodale Institute over almost 20 years, finding showed that organic farming promotes carbon sequestering, or the removal of carbon gasses from the atmosphere and storing in the soil. Organic farming is built on the principle of incorporating more organic matter like mulch and manure into the soil, the soil's ability to absorb carbon increases. This means that organic farming fields have the ability to absorb carbon and hold them in the earth, instead of escaping as gasses and depleting the ozone layer. 

Eating organic is more than just healthy. It's a system that can help create global change and help tackle the most pressing issues, including ones as big and seemingly irreversible as climate change.

Resources:

http://www.twnside.org.sg/title2/susagri/2010/susagri125.htm

https://www.fibl-shop.org/shop/pdf/mb-1500-climate-change.pdf

http://www.thinkgreenliveclean.com/2010/05/can-organic-farming-end-global-warming/

http://www.compassnaturalmarketing.com/2010/09/17/organic-agriculture-a-cool-solution-to-global-warming/

http://www.rodaleinstitute.org/ob_31

Our Farm to Fork Operations

 This post is maybe long overdue, but we thought it would be great to tell you all about how your produce gets from the farmers in Sirsa, Haryana and Uttrakhand to your table in Delhi.

 1. Our amazing farmers harvest and perform an initial sorting of the vegetables, taking out all the veggies that are not "A" grade. The truck for Delhi is then packed, and sent on its way.

2. The truck arrives in Delhi, and the staff at the warehouse unload the truck










3. We sort the produce again, removing any vegetables that were damaged during transport.










4. Now here is where our customers come in. You place an order with our Call Center Team and let them know what you want in your basket.








5. All the orders are packed according to customer preference

6. All the orders are then put into the delivery van and sent to homes all over south Delhi.









7. And then you get a basket of fresh organic fruits and veggies like this delivered straight to your door! Note: we use blue re-usable plastic crates to minimize packaging and decrease our carbon footprint.








We hope this gives you better insight into how your order happens! Happy Eating!

The Environment Series: Part 1 Soil Erosion

You buy organic because you know the chemical free fruits and vegetables are better for your health. But buying organic also has the greater impact of promoting environmental sustainability and ecosystem preservation. Over the next few posts we'll talk about different environmental issues and how organic farming is doing its part to address them.

Soil Erosion

According to article in The Ecologist, almost half of the agricultural land in India is now degraded due to erosion from over use of chemicals. Why should we all be worried about topsoil erosion? If there is less fertile land, we will not be able to grow enough food to feed a continuously growing population. Soil erosion is a natural process where the top layer of soil is worn off by either wind or water. It is a form of soil degradation because of the loss of topsoil. This is especially important to agriculture because it drastically decreases soil fertility and lowers ability of soil to retain water, therefore reducing the productivity of the land. The soil's nutrients are mainly in the topsoil, and heavy erosion leads to infertility, making once productive land completely barren.

There are several modern agricultural practices that lead to rapid soil erosion. High use of agrochemicals is one. Pesticide and herbicide use lowers the amount of organic matter in the soil, causing the soil to absorb significantly less water. It also decimates helpful “weeds” like clover which create a protective cover for the soil. The excess water runs, taking topsoil with it and shunting agrochemicals into streams and other bodies of water. Soil with high organic matter absorbs water more effectively, retaining nutrients because of the soil binding microorganisms. Another cause of erosion is the use of tractors to till the soil. Tractors break up soil particles, creating a fine dust that is susceptible to wind and water erosion. Finally, monoculture, or planting just one crop in a specific area also contributes to erosion because the crop is harvested at once, leaving the fields completely bare and susceptible to the elements. Organic farming seeks to address these problems by engaging in practices that preserve soil quality.

Organic agricultural practices halt soil erosion in a few specific ways. Because of the use of materials like cow dug and vermicompost, soil on organic farms have a significantly higher organic matter content, available potassium, and polysaccharide content than soil on a conventional farm. It also has more active microflora, better soil structure, and significantly more fertile topsoil. All of this means that when heavy rains come water stays in the earth, instead of the topsoil running off with the water flow, and the soil is more resistant to being lifted away by the wind. Other practices include crop rotation, which gives the Earth a chance to recover from the the growing season and replenish nutrients, and encouraging the growth of helpful plants to provide coverage and mulch when uprooted.

Soil erosion is a serious issue, though it doesn't get as much attention as it deserves. The importance of the health of the soil is downplayed, and farmers continuously use more and more chemicals every year to attempt to maintain their yields. With India's arable (farmable) land diminishing at extremely high rates, one has to wonder to the country will continue to feed itself.

Use your demand for organic to create impact and change. By eating organic you are providing farmers for reasons to protect the soil, protect the Earth, and protect our future. 

Sources and Further Reading:

http://www.theecologist.org/News/news_round_up/304237/half_indias_land_degraded_agrochemicals_partly_to_blame.html

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/03/060322141021.htm

http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/engineer/facts/87-040.htm#Conservation%20Measures

http://farmlandforecast.colvin-co.com/2009/12/08/soil-erosion-the-silent-killer.aspx

http://www.cartage.org.lb/en/themes/sciences/earthscience/geology/soils/SoilUse/ErosionSoilDegradation/Erosionsoildegradation.htm

 

So How Do I Know It's Organic?

There is lot of concern about whether our food is really what it says it is. We read about scary things in the papers all the time about our food being diluted, added to, or just being fake! Let's talk a little about organic certification and how the process of maintaining the integrity of organic produce works.

Organic Certification is a stringent process and marks a commitment from the farmer to grow only organic produce. There are many factors that go into the certification process, such as quality of the soil, how long the farmer has been growing chemical-free, if the natural fertilizers and pesticides are safe to use, the quality of the water, and others.

The Standards:

• All the crop production and animal husbandry on a farm must be chemical-free for three years before it can be certified.
• Farms that are under the three year mark are labeled as in-conversion
• All seeds and plant material should be chemical-free, not genetically modified, and no hormones or additives
• Organic farm land must have a buffer zone/ area between it and conventional farms to prevent contamination by run-off from conventional fields.
• All farming practices must promote bio-diversity and be ecologically sound
• Raw animal manure must be composted first
• Farms cannot be contaminated by sewage water (very big plus point of organic)

Farms are checked regularly to ensure all standards are being met. Any foul play leads to immediate suspension or revocation of the certificate. False claims regarding the produce are monitored and fined. Our certification is done by Control Union. We would be happy to provide a copy of our certification at any point upon request. 

NPOP India Organic Logo

Happy Eating, 

I Say Organic

Resources: www.apeda.gov.in

The Dirt On Organic Farming

With our launch we thought that it would be great for our first blog post to describe how exactly organic farming works. We hear the word organic everywhere, but what does it really mean? If farmers are not using chemical pesticides and fertilizers to grow produce, then how are they keeping pests from eating everything?

Organic farming might seem like a return to the basics, but its actually a dynamic and innovative field that is constantly changing and growing. New technologies and scientific practices are being implemented to produce the best nature can provide. Farmers and scientists put a lot of care and creativity into developing the perfect environment for fruits and vegetables to grow in. Here's a look at a few of common practices of organic farming.

Maintaing soil quality: The most important aspect of organic farming is growing produce in nutrient rich soil. The nutrition component of soil dictates the quality of the fruit or vegetable. After all, healthy roots create the foundation for a healthy plant. Balancing out and building healthy soil are done a few ways.

1. Animal manure and compost: Manure and compost help improve the structure and ability of soil to retain water and nutrients. Fertilizer supplies nutrients like phosphorus, nitrogen, and potassium that provide plants the nourishment that they need without toxic chemical byproducts. All you need are a few farmyard animals.
   
   
2. Vermicompost: Red earthworms break down bio matter and their waste products improve the physical structure of soil, improve water retention capabilities, and enrich the soil with micro-organisms. Also, vermicompost releases nutrients as the plants need them, so there is no danger of giving over- fertilizing and “burning” plants.
   
   
3. Crop Rotation: Crop rotation is something farmers have been doing for centuries to replenish soil nutrition after a growing season. Alternating crops with legumes (daals, beans, peanuts) reintroduces nitrogen because of the nitrogen-fixing bacteria that live in the plant's roots. Through this process the soil is revitalized and ready for the next season.
   
   

Improving biodiversity: The farm is an ecosystem, with many different components interacting with one another. Organic farms are designed to increase the beneficial interactions between different plants and animals. For example, marigolds, which are so widely used in India are actually a natural weed killer and deter insects with their unique odor and planting mint next to cabbage keeps away cabbage moths. Broccoli grows really well with beets, but is incompatible with tomatoes. Understanding all the unique relationships between different plants and animals helps bring out the best in nature, and gives us the best tasting most nutritious produce.

Keeping pests away: Using special flowers and plant combinations helps with keeping bugs away, but for the most determined critters farmers make their own natural pesticides. Neem, which can be used to clean teeth, is concentrated into a spray which is then spritzed on plants for protection.

Growing organic is far from a simple process, and the way food is grown has a huge impact on how healthy it is! Great produce starts from the way it is grown, from the seed to fruit or vegetable which ends up on our table.

We hope you enjoyed our first blogpost. Stay tuned for more updates, recipes, and information about our partner farms and company.

Your Partner in Health,

I Say Organic