Organic Farming Methods: An Annotated Thesis

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This is underscored by the brief history of organic farming as
described in the text by Paull (2006). Paull would refer to a British
agriculturalist named Lord Northbourne, who would coin the term organic
farming to refer to that which viewed the whole ecology of the farm as
something which must be preserved. In his work with Lyons (2008), Paull
would renew his endorsement of organic regulatory measures, this time in
response to increased consideration of nanotechnology as a way to stimulate
food growth. This is a finding which is usefully supplemented by the
finding in the article by Badgley et al (2007), which found that in
comparative studies to traditional methods, yields from organic agriculture
were equally high. This indicates that organic methods do not damage
efforts at improving world hunger even as they protect the environment.
This underscores a primary impetus of organic farming operations
which is denoted in the report by Shepherd et al (2003), which undertook an
assessment of the environmental impacts of organic farming. The authors
found that across such subjects as soil health, ecological resiliency,
water contamination and food contamination, organic farming operations have
proven consistently healthier. This positive perspective is also supported
in the article by Bengtsson et al (2005), which addressed the interests of
biodiversity. The withholding from pesticides practiced in organic
operations tend to improve species richness and prevent major ecological
disruption. By contrast, though the article by Hole et al (2004) does not
find reason to doubt that organic operations promote greater biodiversity,
it also finds that evidence is in short supply at this juncture and that
conclusions cannot yet be comparatively drawn to traditional operations
with any empirical reliability.
A good final word on this subject is one which pointedly refutes such
a claim. The article by Pimintel et al (2005), illustrates that so-called
'organic' methods have been in practice for thousands of years.
Indeed,
this is a useful point of resolution for the synthesis of our literature,
indicating that humanity has a well-recorded history of sustainable success
without the aid of machinery or chemical intervention.

Works Cited:

Badgley, C.; Moghtader, J.; Quintero, E.; Zakem, E.; Chappell, M.J.; Aviles-
Vazquez, K.; Samulon, A. & Pefecto, I. (2007). Organic Agriculture and
the Global Food Supply. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems, 22, 86-
108.

Bengtsson, J.; Ahnstrom, J. & Weibull, A. (2005). The effects of organic
agriculture on biodiversity and abudance: a meta-analysis. Journal of
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Dimitri, C. & Greene, C. (2002). Recent Growth Patterns in the U.S.
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Goldberg, R. (2000). The Hypocrisy of Organic Farmers. AgBioWorld.
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Hole, D.G.; Perkins, A.J.; Wilson, J.D.; Alexander, I.H.; Grice, P.V. &
Evans, A.D. (2004). Does organic farming benefit biodiversity.
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Lyons, K. & Paull, J. (2008). Nanotechnology: The Next Challenge for
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Mayo Clinic Staff (MCS). (2008). Nutrition and Healthy Eating. Mayo
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Paull, J. (2006). The Farm As Organism. Elementals-Journal of Bio-
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Pimintel, D.; Hepperly, P.; Hanson, J.; Douds, D. & Seidel, R. (2005).
Environmental, Energetic, And Economic Comparisons of Organic and
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Pollan, M. (2006). Review: The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of
Four Meals. Gastronomica, 7(3), 123-124.

Raeburn, P. (2006). Slow-Acting. Scientific American. Online at
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Raynolds, L.T. (2004). The Globalization of Organic Agro-Food Networks.
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Shepherd, M.; Pearce, B.; Cormack, B.; Phillipps, L.; Cuttle, S.; Bhogal,
A.; Costigan, P. & Unwin, R. (2003). An Assessment of the Environmental
Impacts of Organic Farming. Defra-funded Project.

Wellson, A.J. (2006). Organic….....

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