POWER POINT PRESENTATION ON ORGANIC FARMING

2. Contents
 Organic food
 Organic farming
 Why organic
 Impacts of modern agriculture
 Status of Organic Farming-World
 Organic husbandry
What is Organic Farming?

3.  Organic farming is the production of crops
and livestock without the
use of synthetic chemicals
and inorganic fertilizers.
 Organic agriculture aims at
the human welfare without
any harm to the environment which is the foundation of
human life itself.
3

4. History of Organic Farming
 Organic farming was practiced in India since
thousands of years. Agriculture was practiced
using organic techniques, where the fertilizers,
pesticides, etc., were obtained from plant and
animal products.
 Post-independent India witnessed severe food
crisis.
 India depended on heavy imports of food-for-aid
from western countries.

5.  Green Revolution introduced in 1970’s changed
the situation from food importer to food exporter
by 1990
What is Organic agriculture
 Organic agriculture is a production system that
sustains the health of soil, ecosystem and
people.
 It relies on ecological processes, biodiversity
and biological cycles adapted to local
conditions, rather than the use
of synthetic inputs with adverse
effects.

6.  Organic agriculture combines tradition,
innovation and science to benefit the
environment and promote fair relationships and
a good quality life for all involved.
Why Organic
 Healthy food: Contains no toxic substances
 „ Natural & Good taste
 „ Higher benefit cost ratio due to less external
input use and premium price (20-25%)

7.  „ Takes care of Environmental concerns of
Farming
Why farm organically?
Organic farming aims to:
 increase long-term soil fertility.
 control pests and diseases without harming the
environment.
 ensure that water stays clean and safe.

8.  use resources which the farmer already has, so
the farmer needs less money to buy farm
inputs.
 produce nutritious food, feed for animals and
high quality crops to sell at a good price.
What is conventional/ modern
agriculture?
 Modern agriculture uses pesticides,
herbicides, fungicides, rodenticides and
harmful chemicals to produce the food we
eat.

9.  The food produced from conventional
agriculture is harmful to human health
because they contain residues of chemicals
and in-organic fertilizers. 8
Intensive Farming - chemicals
Many different chemicals are used to
make plants and animals
grow faster
Intensive farmers use artificial
fertilizers and growth
promoters.

10. It is easier to use than manure and smaller
quantities are needed, because it contains
more of the elements.
Artificial fertilizers are spread on the
ground or sprayed on the crops.
Intensive Farming - chemicals
Problems:
 They do not just disappear but stay in the plants that
we eat, so our food is contaminated with chemicals.

11.  Soil used to grow the plants will also be
contaminated and have chemicals in it for a very
long time. Animals eat the grass , which has had
chemicals sprayed on to it, so the chemicals get
into their blood and therefore the
meat that we eat.
 Chemicals run off the land into
rivers and kill plants and fish.
ORGANIC
farming
Artificial fertilizers are banned in Organic farming.

12. Organic farmers use animal manure, compost and human
sewage, (which has been heated to destroy any harmful
microbes) to make their crops grow.
‘Green manure’ is grown – plants are grown, then
ploughed in and left to rot.
Worms, insects and bacteria underground are always
working on making the soil good.
By using a process called CROP ROTATION (changing
the crop grown each year), the farmer can keep a
good soil for many years.

13. Modern Chemical Farming creates
“Dead Soil”
 Acidic soils with few
microorganisms
 Lacking in micro elements,
trace elements, poor vitality
 Almost O organic matter

15. Organic Farming creates “Living Soil”
 Full of life with microorganism, fungi,
worms and termites.
 Very rich in macro and micro
elements, trace
elements, and vital
energy
 Very rich in organic matter
 A 22-year farming trial in N York
(USA) concludes that:
 Organic farming produces the same yields of corn and soybeans as does
conventional farming, but uses 30 percent less energy, less water and no
pesticides,

16.  "Organic farming approaches forthese crops not only use an average of 30 percentless fossil
energy but also conserve more water in the soil, induce less erosion, maintain soil quality and
conserve more biologicalresources than conventional farming does,
What is wrong with intensive
(conventional) agriculture
 Artificial fertilisers and herbicides are easily washed from the soil
and pollute rivers, lakes and water courses.
 The prolonged use of artificial fertilisers results in soils with a low
organic matter content which is easily eroded by wind and rain.
 Dependency on fertilisers. Greater amounts are needed every
year to produce the same yields of crops.
 Artificial pesticides can stay in the soil for a long time and enter
the food chain where they build up in the bodies of animals and
humans, causing health problems.

17.  Artificial chemicals destroy soil micro-organisms resulting in poor
soil structure and aeration and decreasing nutrient availability.
 Pests and diseases become more difficult to control as they
become resistant to artificial pesticides. The numbers of natural
enemies decrease because of pesticide use and habitat loss.
How 'modern farming' affects our world
• Land exhaustion – Loss of soil fertility
• Nitrate run-off – water contamination
• Soil erosion
• Reduced soil porosity due to soil compaction
• Excessive use of pesticides, weedi cides, fungicides

18. • Cruelty to animals due to over-crowding
• Loss of cultivated biodiversity
• Threat to indigenous seeds and animal breeds and species
• Habitat destruction
• Contaminated food
• Destruction of traditional knowledge systems and traditions
• Control of agriculture inputs and food distribution channel
• Threat to individual farmers

19. z Contaminant pesticides
Apples Diphenylamine, Captan, Endosulfan, Phosmet, Azinphos-methyl
Bananas Diazinon, Thiabendazone, Carbaryl
Cabbage Methamidophos, Dimethoate, Fenvalerate, Permethrin, BHC
Carrots DDT, Trifluralin, Parathion, Diazinon, Dieldrin
Cauliflower Methamidophos, Endosulfan, Dimethoate, Chlorothalonil, Diazion
Cherries Parathion, Malathion, Captan, Dicloran, Diazinon
Corn Sulfallate, Carbaryl, Chlorpyrifos, Dieldrin, Lindane
Cucumbers Methamidophos, Endosulfan, Dieldrin, Chlorpyrifos, Dimethoate
Grapes Captan, Dimethoate, Dicloran, Carbaryl, Iprodione
Green Beans Dimethoate, Methamidophos, Endosulfan, Acephate, Chlorothalonil
Lettuce Mevinphos, Endosulfan, Permethrin, Dimethoate, Methomyl
Onions DCPA, DDT, Ethion, Diazinon, Malathion
Oranges Methidathion, Chlorpyrifos, Ethion, Parathin, Carbary
Peaches Dicloran, Captan, Parathion, Carbaryl, Endosulfan
Pears Azinphos-methyl, Cyhexatin, Phosmet, Endosulfan, Ethion
Potatoes DDT, Chlorpropham, Dieldrin, Aldicarb, Chlordane
Spinach Endosuslfan, DDT, Methomyl, Methamidophos, Dimethoate

20. Pesticides in our food (and water)
Strawberries Captan, Vinclozolin, Endosulfan, Methamidophos, Methyl Parathion
Sweet Potatoes Dicloran, DDT, Phosmet, Dieldrin, BHC
Tomatoes Methamidophos, Chlorpyrifos, Chlorothalonilo, Permethrin, Dimethoate
Watermelon Methamidophos, Chlorothalonil, Dimethoate, Carbaryl, Captan

21. The REAL effect of pesticides
Trade name Long-term effects
Camphechlor Cancer suspect, toxic to fish, very persistent
Chlordane/Heptachlor Leukemia suspect, toxic to wildlife, very persistent
Chlordimeform Cancer suspect, bladder damage, toxic to wildlife
DBCP Cancer risk, male sterility, persists in water
DDT
Cancer causing, damage to liver, nerve, brain,
extremely persistent, toxic to wildlife
Aldrin/Dieldrin/Endrin
Cancer suspect, birth defects, very persistent,
toxic to wildlife
EDB
Potent cancer cause, birth defects, lung, liver
damage, very persistent
BHC/Lindane
Proven cancer cause, miscarriage, leukemia
suspect, very persistent, toxic to fish

22. Paraquat No antidote, lung scarring
Endosulfan Nervous system damage
PCP
Nervous system damage, liver damage, skin
disease
2,4,5-T
Potent cancer cause, birth defects, toxic to fish, very
persistent
Today, Oncologists from the Harvard
Medical School recommend to cancer
patients to:
 Change lifestyle

23.  Become vegetarians
or avoid red meat
 Eat lots of organic
food
 Avoid eating at FAST
FOOD Restaurant
like
McDonalds
Certification of Organic crop
production by INDOCERT

24. Standards of certification
(i) National standards for organic production
(NPOP), Govt. of India
(ii) European Union regulations for organic
production rules equivalent to
EC.No.834/2007
(iii) United States organic standards
USDANOP (National Organic Programme).
Sustainable Food Production
“Intensive cultivation of land without conservation of soil fertility and soil
structure would lead ultimately to the springing up of deserts. Irrigation without

25. arrangements for drainage would result in soils getting alkaline or saline.
Indiscriminate use of pesticides, fungicides and herbicides could cause
adverse changes in biological balance as well as lead to an increase in the
incidence of cancer and other diseases, through the toxic residues present
in the grains or other edible parts. Unscientific tapping of underground water
would lead to the rapid exhaustion of this wonderful capital resource left to
us through ages of natural farming. The rapid replacement of numerous
locally adapted varieties with one or two high yielding strains in large
contiguous areas would result in the spread of serious diseases capable of
wiping out entire crops, as happened prior to the Irish potato famine of 1845
and the Bengal rice famine of 1942. Therefore, the initiation of exploitative
agriculture without a proper understanding of the various consequences of
every one of the changes introduced into traditional agriculture and without first
building up a proper scientific and training base to sustain it, may only lead
us into an era of agricultural disaster in the long run, rather than to an era of
agricultural prosperity.”
- M.S. Swaminathan
Indian Science Congress, Varanasi, January 4, 1968

29. Livestock Husbandry in
Temperate Himalyan region
 The Himalayan region is vast, gigantic, diverse and youngest
mountain system in the world.
 It occupies 591 thousand square kilometer
(18% of geographical area of India)
 spread over 2,800 kilometer in length and 220 to 300 kilometer wide
across the 11 states of India
 In this region, 6% of Indian population resides
 Livestock are integral part of farming system for this region where it
not only supplement the family income but also contributes FYM to
the farm which is an essential requirement of largely rain-fed
agriculture of this region.
Himalayan farming System

30.  Land holdings - small and fragmented,
 rain-fed agriculture,
 low input-low output production system,
 sparse population,
 undulating terrain
 poor means of transport and communication,
 women centred agriculture,
 out migration of males in search of off farm
employment,
 poor productivity of crop and livestock,
 fragile eco-system,
 low risk bearing capacity of farmers yet rich in plant
and animal diversity etc.
 People have sustained themselves in this difficult
condition and in their endeavour the livestock were
active partner.
 Indigenous livestock provide practical means of using
natural grasslands in this region

31. Organic Livestock
 Organic cattle farming is a method for
raising cattle in a more "natural" way.
 animals raised this way are allowed to
graze on natural foods and have access to
the outdoors.
 Feed for animals is grown organically,
Not given antibiotics or hormones.
 Animals often have much better living
conditions than most large-scale cattle
farms that are often crowded and prevent
cattle from getting much exercise in order
to maximize profits.

32.  Farm Yard manure is used for producing
organic manure thru vermi-composting, and
bio-gas production
Organic livestock farming
practices
Breeds and breeding-
◦ use of well adapted breeds,
◦ conserve animal genetic resource biodiversity
Pasture management
◦ access to pastures

33. Animal nutrition
◦ No growth hormones
◦ No animal by-products in feed
Housing,
◦ Loose and comfortable
Animal health and disease management
◦ Minimal use of antibiotics
Manure must be managed to prevent
contamination of crops, soil or water by plant
nutrients, pathogenic organisms, heavy metals
or residues of prohibited substances.