UN to Africa: Go Organic

The UN is now suggesting that struggling African farmers go organic for the higher profits:

... Using more natural techniques such as composting, mulching, and crop rotation could help African crops yield two to four times more than they now do, UNCTAD said, citing soil scientists.

Drawing on a study of 331 Ugandan farmers, it concluded that "conversion to organic was fairly easy, involved little risk and required few, if any, fixed investments. The organic households became more food-secure due to higher incomes." ...

That all sounds very sensible. I like it. I worry about it a little, though, that it might backfire in the way that development agencies recommending that anyone who could should plant coffee backfired. When a lot of farmers all over the world grow a certain kind of food, its price goes down. So if you were actually depending on that food as an exportable commodity, you might lose your shirt if everyone else plants the same thing and targets the same markets.

On the one hand, I'd be thrilled if organic farming were so commonplace that it became cheap. On the even brighter side, it'd be far, far better for the environment.

On the other hand, producing food mainly for export has put many countries in economically perilous situations and left their citizens hungry. If you're a smallholding farmer and grow things that are only good to sell, they'd better earn enough at market to buy enough food for your family to eat. This story often ends badly.

So, caution. It'd probably be a great policy goal. It just might not achieve the things the UN is hoping it will achieve in the way they say it would achieve them. And it would be a shame if it were counted a complete failure while having beneficial unintended consequences.

In a best case scenario, it might help restore Africa's soils, for example. Can't make it to lasting prosperity without good soil.

(Photo credit: oneVillage Initiative on Flickr.)