Organic farming and climate change

1. The International Trade Centre and Swiss Research Institute for Organic Agriculture have published a study looking at the carbon sequestration benefits and lower emissions of organic agriculture.

2. Adrian Williams of Cranfield University finds:
Nitrous oxide is the single largest contributor to global warming potential (GWP) for most commodities, exceeding 80% in some cases.

Organic field crops and animal products generally consume less primary energy than non-organic counterparts owing to the use of legumes to fix N rather than fossil energy to make synthetic fertilisers. Poultry meat and eggs are exceptions, resulting from the very high efficiency of feed conversion in the non-organic sector.

Yields (t/ha) are lower for organic than for conventional production such that for a given amount of output more land is always required for organic production (65% to 200% extra).