Modern Agriculture: The Vicious Circle of Decreasing Life
Modern industrial agriculture is the offspring of scientific thinking and
chemical engineering. The materialistic,
reductionist, and
mechanistic
approach of modern science is very useful in the advancement of modern
technology that is using the substances from the mineral kingdom, but it has its
limits and serious drawbacks when applied in agriculture.
[1] For here we are dealing with living
organisms – microorganisms,
plants and animals – and with natural food containing living forces.
For example, the use of artificial fertiliser
increases the electric charge between the earth (negative pole) and the
upper part of the plant (positive pole). This raises the
electro-osmotic
pressure and consequently plants suck up more water than usual. Thus
artificial fertiliser does not increase plant growth by producing more
cells – which is the normal way of growing – but it increases the cells
because of the larger amount of water in them. [2]
This can be noticed in the watery taste of conventionally grown fruit
and vegetables. A further consequence of expanded cells are thinner cell
walls which are more sensitive to environmental conditions and more
vulnerable to outer impacts. This results in weaker, less vital plants.
Such artificially 'swollen' plants do not do very well in a natural
environment where is necessary for the survival of each plant species that only
the strongest and fittest can thrive. Plants grown in conventional fields need
the help of synthetic herbicides,
insecticides and other types of pesticides.
These agrochemicals create a protective barrier against so-called 'weeds',
'harmful' insects and microorganisms, and other so-called 'parasites' which have
the role in nature to remove and break down those plants which don't possess
enough life forces to be capable to survive without such help.
Of course, with such an approach we create serious problems in the
whole chain of food production. Such plants are fed to animals which
need antibiotics to keep them 'healthy' and alive; in food processing
they need food additives to make food 'palatable' and prevent its decay;
and finally people who eat such food need medical drugs to keep them in
'good health'. But, the truth which many don't want to see is that these
substances work as 'chemical shields' against the forces of natural
selection which would otherwise destroy organisms which are too weak to
survive in a natural environment.
There are two key sources behind the vicious circle of decreasing life in conventional food production:
- Materialistic, reductionist, and mechanistic approach to living organisms
- Use of artificial chemical substances: fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, antibiotics and food additives
[3]
In this light we can see the use of genetically modified organisms as the
logical step in the development of such an approach. Genetic engineering tries
to 'solve' problems which have been amassed by the same one-sided thinking,
which treats the living organisms as types of 'food machines' – with the aim to
produce food as cheaply and as quickly as possible. Because the problems in
conventional food production cannot be effectively solved any more by the use of
chemical engineering only, modern genetic science is offering help with its
radical interventions into the basic structures of the living organisms. If
those who promote genetic engineering prevail, the final result will be loss of
suitable living forms for healthy life on earth.
Organic Agriculture: The Circle of Increasing Life
One of the most fundamental principles of
organic farming
and food processing is that only life stimulates life. This means that only soil
which is teeming with life forces can produce strong plants, which in turn
provide healthier food for animals and humans, which then contribute with their
actions to the improvement of the quality of soil and other conditions that
affect the food production. Here we have a circle of increasing vitality and
health. For example, if we just look at the effect of earthworms – which have in
organic farming a very important role – we notice that they help in the airing
and fertilising of the soil. Their castings contain high amounts of nitrogen,
phosphorus and potassium, as well as other minerals and micronutrients necessary
for the healthy growth of plants.
The circle of life presents an ideal picture. The most important
aspect is that we are aware that all we do at any stage of food
production is dependent on a multitude of factors, so we can never claim
that further improvement is not possible. However, it is crucial that we
move in the right direction – that is, in the direction of ever
increasing vitality and food quality.
There are two key sources behind the circle of increasing vitality
in organic food production:
- New science of life (new understanding of living organisms)
- Use of natural substances in farming and food processing
In this context "it is particularly important that we nourish the plants
themselves in the right way. Here you must consider the fact that the plants are
something living. The plants are not minerals; they are something living. A
plant comes to us out of the seed we put in the ground. The plant cannot
flourish unless the soil itself is to some degree alive. And how do we make the
soil alive? By manuring it properly! Yes, proper manuring is what will give us
really good plant proteins.
It's no use thinking that one can make fertilizer simply by
combining substances that are present in cow manure. One must see
clearly that cow manure does not come out of a chemist's laboratory but
out of a laboratory that is far more scientific – it comes from the far,
far more scientific laboratory inside the cow. And for this reason cow
manure is the stuff that not only makes the roots of plants strong, but
that works up powerfully into the fruits and produces good, proper
protein in the plants which makes man vigorous."
[4] always when he eats good natural food.
Now we can understand why in organic farming so much importance is given
to the enlivening of the soil. Behind this approach is a more or less
conscious awareness that although "plants themselves could never be diseased
in a primary sense, since they are produce of a healthy living world, they
can suffer from diseased conditions in their environment, especially in the
soil; the causes of so-called plant diseases should be sought there,"
[5] in
the environmental impacts. Thus we can also understand why everything we do
in each step has an effect on the level of living forces in the soil, plants
and animals, and why it will all inevitably affect the final quality of food.
DIETARY CONCLUSIONS & PRACTICAL INSTRUCTIONS
By eating organic foods we avoid artificial chemical
substances used in conventionally produced food (e.g. pesticides and food
additives), including some other nasty things (e.g. food additives made from
human hair
[6] or insects). This alone is worth the extra money usually paid for
organic food, but we must be aware that there are various grades of quality
inside organically produced food itself.
- In principle the best food is
wild food (grown in
unpolluted areas) and biodynamic (Demeter) food.
[7]
- The next best is certified organic food .
- Then we have natural food
[8] – food that is grown
traditionally,
or organic food without a certificate (there are some small farmers and
gardeners who use organic methods but are not certified). Assurance that
such food is organic is possible only if we personally know the growers in our
local area.
Within each of these groups there are no two foods of the same quality. Good
quality is dependent on many factors – such as microclimate, the quality of
soil, the quality of seeds
[9] – and methods and materials which are used or not used by farmers and
gardeners. Unfortunately it needs to be admitted that basic standards for
organic agriculture and food processing (i.e. The
IFOAM Organic Standards) are not
yet as they should be if the production of the best quality food were the top
priority. For example, these standards are allowing the use of modern plant
hybrids in spite of the fact that they were developed with the main aim to
produce the highest quantities of uniformly shaped plant products. The members
of the organic movement who are using these seeds are somehow forgetful that the
vitality and health of plants is essentially dependent on the vitality and
health of seeds!
This example shows that the most important impact on the final quality
of food is made by the knowledge and skills of people involved in food
production. For good quality we need more masters in the area of farming and
food processing and time to learn new skills. And time to heal all barren
land so that it can be fertile again, giving us crops full of life and vital
forces.
♣ See
HOLISTIC FOOD ‘PYRAMID’
for practical quality guidelines.
WARNING: You always have to put the above
practical dietary instructions inside the framework of
GENERAL NUTRITIONAL
GUIDELINES with the aim to know their limits when looking for a solution
of a specific nutritional problem. You also need to be familiar with
THE ROLE OF NUTRITIONAL GUIDELINES with the aim to avoid any one-sided conclusions.
