As the human population continues to grow, farmers have adapted their practices to keep up with the increasing demand for food. While farmers have managed to supply the market with enough food, increased production has opened the doors to nutrient depletion of soils, contaminated groundwater, higher farming costs, and commercialized farms that are designed to turn out large quantities of single crops. With so many issues affecting the market and the future of agriculture, some farmers are turning towards the concept of sustainable agriculture. Sustainable agriculture is a farming practice in which farmers aim to provide food for people while leaving minimal impact on the environment. According to Dr. John E. Ikerd, Professor Emeritus of Agricultural
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Many people that make arguments against sustainable agriculture practices make note of the reduced yields and increased labor requirements that come along with it. Others have also said that it would cost the average conventional farmer entirely too much to make the switch over to a sustainable farm. However, a lot of the opposition comes from short-term projections, as the concept of widespread adoption of sustainable farming techniques has only been recent. In reality, the long-term capabilities of large-scale practices are not yet known. According to one research paper, it is not known yet whether the transition to sustainable agriculture will even keep up with demand for food in still-developing countries, let alone the future needs of developed countries like the United States, that have a much higher demand. However, by researching and continuously advancing sustainable practices and strategies, the outlook for a positive outcome is high (Pretty, p.56). This faces farmers with an important question: which is the higher cost, the money required to make their farm sustainable, or the price future generations will pay when the land can no longer keep up with the demands placed upon
Many people that make arguments against sustainable agriculture practices make note of the reduced yields and increased labor requirements that come along with it. Others have also said that it would cost the average conventional farmer entirely too much to make the switch over to a sustainable farm. However, a lot of the opposition comes from short-term projections, as the concept of widespread adoption of sustainable farming techniques has only been recent. In reality, the long-term capabilities of large-scale practices are not yet known. According to one research paper, it is not known yet whether the transition to sustainable agriculture will even keep up with demand for food in still-developing countries, let alone the future needs of developed countries like the United States, that have a much higher demand. However, by researching and continuously advancing sustainable practices and strategies, the outlook for a positive outcome is high (Pretty, p.56). This faces farmers with an important question: which is the higher cost, the money required to make their farm sustainable, or the price future generations will pay when the land can no longer keep up with the demands placed upon