From plants, bees, and butterflies to birds and mammals — organic farming acts as a guardian for them. And for us, too.

We’ll start with something you may already know:

For the past hundred years or so, in the name of cheap food, people have been subjecting fertile soils to such intense pressure that they are beginning to erode, lose their fertility, dry out, and lose the life within them. The main destroyers of fertile soil are farmers. One day, we will all realize that we have gone beyond the point at which the planet can sustain our civilization. That we failed to stop using fossil fuels for energy and destroying nature in pursuit of short-term profits. And although hardly anyone wants this to happen, our world is moving steadily in exactly that direction.

You’ve probably already guessed where we’re going with this. And yes — there are many solutions to these problems, and one of them is called (drumroll, please) organic farming.

Let’s picture the following scenario:

Before we get back to the soil, let’s picture the following scene — you’re walking along a road through the fields. There are no people, no cars, just you and the road ahead. The sun is shining, fields of crops stretch as far as the eye can see, and the only sounds are birdsong, the rustling of a hedgehog or field mouse, the buzzing of bees and other insects…

Uh… actually, no — none of that can be heard. Pesticides have wiped out or driven away the insects, the birds have left because the insects are gone, and small mammals have also disappeared, either because they lack food or because their habitats have been poisoned. The field is eerily silent. A little like the aftermath of a war.

This is the situation we have found ourselves in as a result of industrial agriculture. Its scale and nuances vary across different parts of the planet, but the underlying idea is the same — intensive agriculture is one of the main drivers of mass species extinction and the destruction of the natural world, without which human civilization cannot survive.

What Can We Do?

The answer, as we’ve already rather dramatically announced, is organic farming, which has long proven itself to be a better friend to wildlife. According to research, such as this or this,

Organic farming supports around 30% greater species richness among plants, insects, and birds, and over 50% greater abundance of organisms overall.

Because the very purpose of organic farming is to protect biodiversity and life, and in doing so provide better food. This is based on several key principles, which in turn lead to several important outcomes:

• Synthetic pesticides and herbicides are not used — making organic farms a haven for bees, butterflies, birds, and other wildlife.
• Synthetic fertilizers are not used, and crops are rotated every two years — keeping the soil from becoming depleted, improving its fertility, and helping healthy, living soil build natural resilience to droughts and floods.
• Every step of cultivating the land and harvesting the crops is carefully considered to preserve a good-neighbor relationship with all the living creatures that share the farmer’s land.

Because, in the end, this land is only “ours” temporarily. And we have a responsibility to pass it on in good shape.

Better this way, right?