Growing organic food can be significantly more profitable than traditional farming, netting organic farmers 22ย percentย to 35ย percentย more than their conventional counterparts, according to newย researchย published in the journalย PNAS.
In the meta-analysis of more than 120 studies on the economics of organic farming, Washington State University professor of entomology David Crower and his co-author found that organic farming typically yields 10 to 18ย percentย less than conventional farming. That lower output may be why some farmers doubt the benefits of going organic, but economic measures besides crop yield seem to play an important role. The premium prices customers pay for organic products more than make up for the lower yield; while only a 5 to 7ย percentย premium is required to break even, organic products typically have a 29 to 32ย percentย premium, the analysis found. Going organic requires farmers to spend 5 to 7ย percentย more on labor, but besides labor, costs are largely the same.
โPublic perception is that if youโre doing organic, maybe youโre sacrificing financial sustainability, but we show thatโs really not the case,โ says Crowder. โIf youโre getting a 30ย percentย margin on your competitors, that would be the envy of almost any business.โ
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The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis. Read full, original post:ย Why It Might Actually Pay To Be an Organic Farmer
