Maintaining soil fertility – what can we as individuals do to contribute?
Dear Friends of ELIANT,
Over the last 40 years nearly 33 percent of the earth's surface has been eroded and become infertile. This development appears unstoppable – the areas available for production continue to decline each year. This means that future generations will have ever less land available to meet their food requirements. It is vital for our survival that the remaining fertile soils are retained.
Causes of soil erosion
Intensive agriculture must continually improve its efficiency if it is to compete effectively on the market place with low prices. The plants are fed with chemical fertilizers and numerous application of pesticides are sprayed. The result is the disappearance of soil fungi and micro-organisms needed by the plant roots and for soil fertility. The soil loses its structure, water holding capacity declines and erosion occurs. Eroded soils are unable to absorb sudden heavy downpours which in turn causes flooding and mudslides. These soils are also unable to retain moisture and without adequate irrigation possibilities, crops will suffer and fail during periods of hot, dry weather.
What can we do? The more we understand of this situation the clearer it becomes that consumers ultimately hold the whip hand – our buying choices can secure the overall sustainability of organic agriculture:
Organic and biodynamic practices specifically enhance soil fertility, they can also regenerate soils that have eroded. All chemical fertilizers and pesticides are dispensed with and care is taken to ensure that high quality food is produced from healthy soils. Social sustainability is however also important – the prices charged should not only cover the cost of production but also the development of the farms and people working on them. Ever since it began, the ELIANT alliance has championed the promotion and further development of organic and biodynamic farming. Your donations help us to continue our work. Thank you for all your support!
With warm greetings (on behalf of the ELIANT team)
Michaela Glöckler
PS Our education campaign is developing well but there is still a long way to go to reach the goal of one million signatures in one year. We are grateful for every signature and for sharing our link widely. PLEASE CHOOSE YOUR LANGUAGE ON OUR WEBSITE BY CLICKING ON THE NATIONAL FLAGS.
