Organic and conventional farmers go head-to-head

Readers' comments (11)

• SouthernSkye | 25 May 2010 6:53 am

  Shame, United we stand, divided we fall. It is all a method of doing the same thing. It makes me rather sad when I see farming attacking itself. there are enough who do that without it coming from within.

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• Editor's comments | 25 May 2010 6:53 am

  The idea is not to attack each other, but instead to have a constructive debate, There have been some barbed comments from both sides in recent months - organic and conventional - and hopefully we can explore those arguments in the debate rather than simply hosting a mud slinging contest.

• Anonymous | 25 May 2010 9:30 am

  Well said SouthernSkye, why can't we learn from other methods of farming to better the industry rather than cheap shots at one another. Totally pointless! Organic has its place for those whoo want to buy it but so does conventional, we're perminantely told to by more consumer orientated so when there is a market for both why can't we just get on with promoting quality British Agriculture, one and all!

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• vicki hird | 25 May 2010 10:13 am

  If either have any sense they will agree that to feed the world we need to change what the world wants to eat. How we produce food is vital and organic has huge advantages - (soil, GHG emmssions, protecting biodiversity, energy and encouraging new diets) but changing diets will be central - -eg getting of the factroy farmed meat treadmill which is hugely inefficient - do they agree on that?

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• Tom Rigby | 25 May 2010 10:27 am

  I have to agree with Southern Skye as well here, there is going to be both organic and conventional farming for the foreseeable future and to invite a passionate advocate of each to go “head-to-head” for 45 minutes to decide which is “best” is a bit Harry Hill.
  
  There is still time for a rethink Jack, maybe you could invite both to come up with a coalition agreement on why in an age of cutbacks and austerity it is still important to support UK farming.
  

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• Diana Korchien | 25 May 2010 2:06 pm

  Vicki is absolutely right to criticise factory farming on economic grounds alone. If one sticks to a largely veggie diet, one needs a lot less land to grow the food one needs. Multiply that 'one' times nearly 7 billion and you have the planetary answer.

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• Lurch | 25 May 2010 3:37 pm

  But it should be perfectly possible to feed the world without dictating to the entire population what they can and can't eat. less livestock means areas that will only support pasture will be abandoned and those habitats will suffer. Sustainable agriculture should be about learning from organic and conventional agriculture, reducing waste where possible, conservation where sensible and most importantly providing consumers of all types with good quality food that they want, and can afford to eat, not dictating to the majority views on one aspect without thought to knock on effects or others. Joined up thinking which seems to have disappeared.

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• Newt | 25 May 2010 3:56 pm

  I agree with Southern Skye too. After 25 years as a dedicated organic farmer, I have had enough of the Soil Association who behave like green Nazises all the time attacking even their own farmers with their Gestapo, Soil Association Certification Ltd. What the world needs is good honest food that doesn't cost the Earth -- all the Soil Association want is to prove their superiority over everyone else! Standards, standards, standards!
  
  I've news for the editor, all you are going to get is the same old attack on farming, from one side, and an attack on the Soil Association (that is probably justified) on the other!

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• Madeleine Lewis | 26 May 2010 3:11 pm

  We're looking for farmers to write blogs for Farming Futures about the future of farming. Climate change, organic production, renewable energy, efficiency, carbon storage, energy crops - we're interested in all kinds of topics. We'd love you to share your views and experiences on the site.
  
  You can see the blog here: www.farmingfutures.org.uk. Contact us via the site if you're interested.
  

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• tommac | 27 May 2010 0:06 am

  there are many adavantages in organic farming and conventional as well come to think ,what the debate should be is " should we not as a world be curving the world population to what we can suply sustainlly " lets face it we are going to have to use a fair percentage of the agri ground for bio enthol / desel etc

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• eryl jones | 28 May 2010 7:39 am

  well said newt! as a writer on rural affairs, I have been trying to expose the soil assoc. for what they are for years. Green nazis is a very fitting description. I have farmed organically for years - long before it was fashionable. I farm with wildlife and sustainability in mind but without causing suffering to my animals and I dislike factory farming as much as anyone. The S.A. have been trying to undermine good conventional farmers as well as other organic organisations for years with their lies and false claims about organic food and other farming pracitices - all of which have been completely blown out of the water. If we are going to have sustainable, profitable farming without resource to subsidies and treat the countryside as wildlife's home as well as our work place, then we need to all adopt an integrated management policy.That and get rid of the Soil Association.

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