Sustainable Agriculture: Frequently Asked Questions
What is sustainable agriculture?
The Groundwater Protection Act defines sustainable agriculture as "the appropriate use of crop and livestock systems and agricultural inputs supporting those activities that maintain economic and social viability while preserving the high productivity and quality of Iowa's land.
Source: www.leopold.iastate.edu
Sustainable agriculture can provide high food, feed, or energy crop yields without destroying the environment or undermining current productivity. Farmers who take a sustainable approach substitute knowledge for pesticides and fertilizers. They use crop rotations and other adjustments of the agricultural system to solve problems. For example, soil enrichment produces healthy plants that resist disease, cover crops retard erosion and control weeds, and natural predators help control pests. ...
Source: www.ucsusa.org
It's a system to provide people with sufficient food, that takes into consideration environmental awareness and conservation, economic feasibility, and community support. Read this well written description here:
Source: umcp.org
Sustainable agriculture is based on the principle that we can meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. With goals of environmental health, economic profitability and social and economic equity for farmer, producer and customer, sustainability requires a commitment to stewardship of the land and natural resources. ...
Source: www.truittbros.com
Sustainable agriculture is a way of growing food that is healthy, does not harm the environment, respects workers, is humane to animals, provides a fair wage to the farmer, and supports farming communities. Characteristics of this type of agriculture include: conservation and preservation, biodiversity, animal welfare, economic viability and socially just.
Source: www.sustainabletable.org
How can I support sustainable agriculture?
Grow your own food in whatever space you have. Buy organic foods at food co-ops, natural food stores, or ask your supermarket to carry organic. Shop at a farmers market and ask the growers about their methods. Join CAFF.
Source: www.caff.org
What is the Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture?
The Kerr Center is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit educational foundation established in 1985. The home office, farm, and ranch are located near Poteau in southeastern Oklahoma. The Kerr Center also operates a historical farm and museum near Sallisaw, Oklahoma.
Source: www.kerrcenter.com
What is sustainable farming/agriculture?
It is a way of raising food that is healthy for consumers and animals, does not harm the environment, is humane for workers, respects animals, provides a fair wage to the farmer, and supports and enhances rural communities. Sustainable farming/agriculture is more a way of life than a law or regulation. Each step you take benefits both you and your family, and helps preserve and protect the planet for future generations.
Source: www.cleonpatra.com
Does Lava Lake support sustainable agriculture? If so, how?
Lava Lake strives to make all our operations sustainable by 1) avoiding the use of pesticides and herbicides and maintaining our organic certification on over 60,000 acres of pasture and range land; 2) continually evaluating our impact on the land where our animals graze through scientific research; 3) implementing a variety of habitat restoration projects; 4) participating in and supporting local farmers markets and our local food distribution networks; and 5) conserving resources wherever we can. ...
Source: www.lavalakelamb.com
What is the Difference between the Sustainable Agriculture Club and the Garden Club?
The Sustainable Agriculture Club has been around for several years and runs a community garden on Adelphi Road near the Archives branch. The Garden Club is a brand new group that runs an organic urban garden right on-campus outside St Mary's Hall. Both groups are SGA recognized and have separate budgets and projects. However, the groups have overlapping membership and collaborate extensively.
Source: umcp.org
How does ISF understand " Sustainable Agriculture "?
ISF understands sustainable agriculture as the evolving management and conservation of the natural resource base in any given region, and the global orientation of technical and institutional change, in such a manner as to ensure the steady attainment and continued, safe satisfaction of human needs for present and future generations. A sustainable agriculture must attempt to sustain all biodiversity through a blending of innovation and traditional local knowledge. ...
Source: www.worldseed.org
What do you mean by sustainable agriculture?
We utilize mountain pastures that would not be farmed and would grow up to brush, or have to be mowed if we were not using them. We are sustaining the majority of the land in our town. Unfortunately we are losing land every year to new housing development. Half of the land we use is leased from other landowners. This is an area that used to be small dairy farms, most of which disappeared in the middle of the 1900's. The pastures we use have never had pesticides applied to them. ...
Source: www.vermontgrassfedbeef.com
Can I get a degree in sustainable agriculture?
Iowa State University was the first land-grant school in the United States to offer a Graduate Program in Sustainable Agriculture (GPSA) at the master and doctorate levels. The interdepartmental program involves more than 50 faculty from 17 academic departments or units at ISU, and is supported by the Henry A. Wallace Endowed Chair for Sustainable Agriculture, the Leopold Center, the ISU College of Agriculture and the ISU Graduate College. ...
Source: www.leopold.iastate.edu
Can genetically modified crops contribute to sustainable agriculture?
SAI Platform is of the opinion that the potential contribution of this technology to sustainable development cannot be ignored. However, some questions still need to be addressed concerning the impact of various varieties. Therefore we supports on-going research in this field. If genetically modified crop varieties are approved after sound human and environmental safety assessment, they should be reviewed against sustainable agricultural principles and practices. ...
Source: www.saiplatform.org
How does Food Alliance define sustainable agriculture?
Sustainable agriculture speaks to our ability to produce safe, healthy, affordable food in sufficient quantities to maintain our population without degrading the productivity of the land, quality of life in our communities, or the resiliency of surrounding ecosystems. As a word used to describe companies or products, “sustainable” speaks to whether there is a system in place to identify and ameliorate risks associated with those companies and their products, and to how well that system is operating. ...
Source: www.foodalliance.org
Does sustainable agriculture employ a more modern approach to farming?
Sustainable agriculture does not mean a return to either the low yields or poor farmers that characterized the 19th century. Rather, sustainability builds on current agricultural achievements, adopting a sophisticated approach that can maintain high yields and farm profits without undermining the resources on which agriculture depends. Crop rotations work to reduce pest-control costs just as well with today's high yielding varieties of crops as with yesterday's lower yielding varieties. ...
Source: www.ucsusa.org
How can the production and use of biochar contribute to sustainable agriculture?
Biomass fuels such as wood, herbaceous materials and agricultural by-products currently form the world’s third largest primary energy resource, behind coal and oil. At best, conventional biomass to energy is considered to be carbon neutral. Harvesting biomass to produce energy may not be sustainable because it can result in reduced soil productivity by depletion of carbon and nutrients. ...
Source: www.carbonchar.com
What jobs are available for people interested in sustainable agriculture, local food and cuisine, food policy and food security issues?
Many different career paths are available depending on your background and experience. Here are some ideas to get you started in your search: Listservs are a good place to get position postings and learn more about what people are doing. NEFOOD-L is a list focused on community food security, and frequently has position postings, as well as lots of great information and discussion. Websites such as Idealist.com , EcoEmploy.com , and PASAfarming.org Research organizations that currently exist and check their websites. ...
Source: www.sustainableunh.unh.edu
Are there other resources you’d recommend for information about sustainable agriculture?
The list can go on forever – but here are a few good places to start: University of California Sustainable Ag Research and Education Program Alternative Farms Information Center Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas Cal Poly Sustainable Ag Resource Consortium If these don’t give you the information you need, contact us and maybe we can help you narrow your search!
Source: www.vineyardteam.org
Will sustainable agriculture require land set aside for parks and wilderness?
Opponents of sustainable agriculture often claim that sustainable agriculture produces such low yields that land currently set aside for parks and wilderness will need to be reclaimed to meet basic food and energy needs. But, sustainable agriculture is not low-yield agriculture. It is not necessarily less efficient over the long term than industrial agriculture, so it will not require substantially more land to produce the same amount of crops. ...
Source: www.ucsusa.org
Does your company have a formal programme of encouraging suppliers to move towards more sustainable forms of agriculture (e.g. through integrated crop management)?
Again in the case of British Sugar, as above the company's 40 area managers (field staff) advise growers on best practice. The company's crop profitability initiative is a computer based programme to encourage growers to minimise inputs (e.g. herbicide/pesticides etc) and economically optimise their yields.
Source: www.abf.co.uk
