‘Widespread disconnect between reality and public perception’—Why factory farming is superior to organic

Steven Novella | NeuroLogica Blog | December 19, 2024

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[T]here is no evidence of any nutritional or health advantage from consuming organic produce. Further – and most people I talk to find this claim shocking – organic farming is worse for the environment than conventional or even “factory” farming.

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Organic farming simply uses more land than conventional farming, 20-40% more land on average. This fact overwhelms any other alleged advantage of organic farming. I say alleged because organic farms can and many do use pesticides – they just use natural pesticides, which are often less effective requiring more applications. Sometimes they also rely on tilling, which releases carbon from the soil.

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Eating locally grown food … is, in a way, a selfish act of privilege. It is condemning the environment so you can feel good about yourself. … But we need to get 95% of our calories from factory farms that are brutally efficient. … [W]e have to dispense with the comforting but ultimately fictional narrative that the old gentle methods of farming are the best. We need science-based maximal efficiency.

This is an excerpt. Read the original post here