Joseph Goebbels told and probably taught the world in the most effective manner that if you repeat a lie a hundred times then people will start believing it as the truth. That is the simple principle he and his leader based their empire on. Of course, there was also a bit of fear added to it to make sure people heed to their wishes. I thought that nothing captured this philosophy more than the movie ‘V for Vendetta’ and if you did not watch it till now, go out and rent the DVD. Anyway, I have gone a bit tangential there, but my point was that sometimes we get so used to the lie that we think it is the truth.
This is exactly what is happening with organic farming and how a few firms have told us that industrial farming is better. According to the latest scientific reports, the whole belief that organic farming is not good enough to feed the planet is nothing but sheer misconception and a fabricated lie to make sure that some people end up making big money. Now around 60 countries have officially declared, by signing a report published, that industrial farming is not the way forward and only sustainable, local farming will be able to combat climate change, hunger and poverty.
The International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD) report is the product of four years’ research into global agriculture. It culminated in a meeting in Johannesburg last week where more than 400 scientists, government emissaries and representatives from the World Bank, UN and NGOs agreed that we need to change the way we farm worldwide. It also stated that we need to alter our view of ‘Success’ in order to make sure we have a better tomorrow.
The report concluded that ‘success’ should not be seen in terms of higher yields and ‘technological fixes’, the idea behind industrial farming. Instead, it says, ‘success’ should be measured in what the report calls “agroecological terms”. These include environmental impacts, food trade arrangements and rural populations’ ability to sustain their way of living. So there you have it. Four long years of research has told us that we can both feed the hungry in the world and continue to have a planet to live on by using nothing but Organic Farming. Hope many across the globe take notice.
