Organic Agriculture

Organic agricultural production is a system of agriculture that was developed in response to the quickly advancing agricultural techniques and technologies in the 20th century. Organic agriculture opts for the use of more natural practices in agriculture with the goal of improving environmental and ecological sustainability. Many countries have developed their own regulatory system for what is considered to be organic, but most share some key features including:

  • Not using synthetic fertilizers, instead opting for natural alternatives like animal manures, green manures, or mineral salts.
  • Not using synthetic pesticides, instead opting for natural alternatives for crop protection like the use of natural toxins, some copper salts, biocontrol, or cultural practices like crop rotation and tillage.
  • Not using products of genetic engineering, including transgenesis and cisgenesis, but generally excluding products of mutation breeding.