More Evidence Organic Farming is Bad writes Steven Novella on his Neurologica blog, based a major study just published in Nature:
It is a powerful argument against organic farming. This dovetails with the previous study I discussed, which showed that intense farming is better for the environment than organic farming. This is due primarily to land use. Organic farming is less productive per hectare (see graphic above), and any decreased CO2 production from avoiding fossil-fuel based fertilizers or other methods is more than offset by the decreased production and increased land use. This disadvantage will only become greater with time, as the advantages of conventional farming increase and the greater inefficiency of spreading into suboptimal land increases.
Scientists are increasingly coming to the firm conclusion that we have to optimize our farming, and organic farming just doesn’t cut it. This should come as no surprise, as organic farming is not evidence-based or even outcome-based – it is methodology-based, and also is derived from an appeal-to-nature fallacy. It avoids whatever does not feel “natural,” and then tries to present itself as more wholesome. Unfortunately, this resonates with human psychology, but the details don’t make sense when you take a close look. Organic produce is no better, but it is more wasteful, and therefore more expensive and worse for the environment.
https://www.aei.org/publication/monday-evening-links-11/