Agricultural Term name Explanations
[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.13″]1Land exhaustionThe constant use of artificial fertilizer, together with a lack of crop rotation, reduces the soil’s fertility year by year.2FertilizersHigh yield levels are produced by applying large quantities of artificial fertilizers, instead of by maintaining the natural fertility of the soil.3Nitrate run-offAbout half of the nitrate in the artificial fertilizer used on crops is dissolved by rain. The dissolved nitrate runs off the fields to contaminate water courses.4Soil erosionWhere repeated deep ploughing is used to turn over the ground, heavy rains can carry away the topsoil and leave the ground useless for cultivation.5Soil compactionDamage to the structure of soil by compression is a serious problem in areas that are intensively farmed. Conventional tillage may involve a tractor passing over the land six or seven times, and the wheeling’s can cover up to 90 per cent of a field. Even a single tractor pass can compress the surface enough to reduce the porosity of the soil by 70 per cent, increasing surface run-off and, therefore, water erosion. In the worst cases, the surface run-off may approach 100 percent – none of the water penetrates the surface.6Agricultural fuelAs crop yields grow, so does the amount of fuel needed to produce them. European farmers now use an average of 12 tons of fuel to farm a square kilometer of land; American farmers use about 5 tons (1987 figures).7Biocide spraysThe only controls used against weeds and pests are chemical ones. Most crops receive many doses of different chemicals before they are harvested.8Cruelty to animalsOn most “modern” farms, all animals are crowded together indoors. Complex systems of machinery are needed to feed them, while constant medication is needed to prevent disease. The cruelty involved in managing, breeding, growing and slaughtering farm animals today is unimaginably repulsive and horrifying.9Animal slurryWith so many animals packed together in indoor pens, their manure accumulates at great speed. It is often poured into lagoons which leak into local watercourses, contaminating them with disease-causing organisms and contributing to algae-blooms.10Imported animal feedMany farms are not self-sufficient in animal feed; instead they rely on feed brought into the farm. This often comes from countries which can ill afford to part with it.11Stubble burningIn countries where stubble is burned, large amounts of potentially useful organic matter disappear into the sky in clouds of polluting smoke.12Loss of cultivated biodiversityLarge and other chemical farms tend to be monocultures growing the same crop and crop variety.13Threat to indigenous seeds and animal breeds and speciesNative cultivars and animal breeds lose out to exotic species and hybrids. Many native animal breeds are today threatened with extinction. The same holds true for many indigenous plant varieties which have disappeared within the space of one generation.14Habitat destructionAgribusiness farming demands that anything which stands in the way of crop production is uprooted and destroyed. The wild animals and plants which were once a common sight around farms are deprived of their natural habitat and die out.15Contaminated foodFood, both plant and animal products, leaves the farm contaminated with the chemicals that were used to produce it.16Destruction of traditional knowledge systems and traditionsRural indigenous knowledge and traditions, both agricultural and non-agricultural, is invariably connected to agriculture and agricultural systems.17Control of agriculture inputs and food distribution channelThe supply and trading in agricultural inputs and produce is in the hands of a few large corporations. This threatens food security, reducing the leverage and importance of the first and the last part of the supply chain – the farmer and the consumer.18Threat to individual farmersChemical agriculture is a threat to their livelihoods and changes their lifestyles, unfortunately not for the better.
Source: http://www.satavic.org/issues.htm
Our Product Details with regard to Organic Farming:
We are producing the following two products.
Panchagavya – an organic fertilizer
Agnihastra – an organic pesticides / insecticides / fungicides.
The details about this product and the certificates can be viewed in our website.
[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]