Page 279 - Environment: The Science Behind the Stories

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Sales 13 Certified operations 13
25 Share of all food sales 4% 12 Cropland 12
11
11
Sales (millions of dollars) 15 3% Percent share of all food sales Land in organic production (thousands of km 2 ) 9 9 Thousands of certified organic operations
Pasture/Rangeland
10
10
20
8
8
7
7
2%
6
6
5
5
10
3
3
5 1% 4 4
2
2
0 0% 1 1
0
0
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 1995 2000 2005
Year Year
(a) Sales of organic food (b) Extent of organic agriculture
Figure 10.22 Organic agriculture is growing. Sales of organic food in the United States (a) have increased
rapidly, both in total dollar amounts (bars) and as a percentage of the overall food market (line). Since the
1990s (b), U.S. acreage devoted to organic crops and livestock has quadrupled, and certified operations have
more than tripled. Sources: (a) Adapted by permission from Willer, Helga (2013) Organic agriculture worldwide: Current statistics.
FiBL-IFOAM Report. IFOAM, Bonn; FiBL, Frick; ITC, Geneva. Data used with permission from Organic Trade Association OTA:
Manufacturer Survey 2012–2013. (b) Data from USDA Economic Research Service.
Government initiatives have assisted the growth of
Organic agriculture is booming organic farming. The European Union supports farmers finan-
Just a decade or two ago, few farmers grew organic food, few cially during conversion. This is an example of a subsidy
consumers wanted it, and the only place to buy it was in spe- (p. 181) aimed at reducing the external costs (pp. 146, 165) to
cialty stores. Today that has changed; three of four Ameri- society of industrial agriculture. The United States offers no
cans buy organic food at least occasionally, more than four such subsidies, which may explain why U.S. organic produc-
of five retail groceries offer it, and Americans are the world’s tion lags behind that of Europe. However, the 2008 Farm Bill
eighth-highest per-person consumers of organic food. In fact, (p. 238) did set aside $112 million over 5 years for organic
consumer demand for organic food is sometimes so great that agriculture, and the government helps to defray certification
farmers cannot keep up with demand, and shortages occur. expenses. Government support is helpful, because conversion
U.S. consumers spent $29.2 billion on organic food in 2011, often means a temporary loss in income for farmers. Once
amounting to 4.2% of all food sales (Figure 10.22a). World- conversion is complete, though, studies suggest that reduced
wide, sales of organic food more than tripled between 2000 inputs and higher market prices can make organic farming at
and 2010, when sales neared $60 billion. least as profitable for the farmer as conventional methods.
Production is increasing along with demand (Figure 10.22b).
Although organic agriculture takes up less than 1% of agricultural Figure 10.23 Mexico is a world leader in the production of
land worldwide (37 million ha, or 91 million acres, in 2011), this organic coffee. These farmers are harvesting coffee beans from
area is rapidly expanding. Two-thirds of this area is in developed an organic plantation of shade-grown coffee in Chiapas, Mexico.
nations, and nearly two-thirds is grazing land. In the United
States, nearly 2 million ha (4.8 million acres) are under organic
management. Europe boasts still more: 10.6 million ha (26.2 mil-
lion acres) in 2011, most in nations of the European Union, where
5.4% of the agricultural area is in organic production. Today
about 2 million farmers and ranchers in more than 160 nations
practice organic agriculture commercially to some extent.
Mexico is a leader in organic agriculture among developing
nations. Overall, 1.5% of Mexico’s agricultural land is organic,
one of the highest percentages for developing nations, and
170,000 Mexican farmers farm organically, the third-highest
number in the world. Fully 30% of Mexico’s coffee crop is now
organic, and Mexico produces more organic coffee than any
other nation (Figure 10.23). Besides coffee, Mexico grows cocoa
and a variety of fruits and vegetables organically. Most of this
278 produce is destined for export to the United States and Europe.

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