Food Myth Busters

Publisher: ZZZ Unknown

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Sustainable farmers build healthy soil by planting a variety of crops and rotating them. They raise their animals on the farm, not in cramped factories. They fertilize using compost and livestock or planting soil-nourishing crops. Healthier plants with good crop rotation also help keep pests in check without hurting the bugs we need - like those all-important pollinators.
And how does this choice impact everyone else? Massively. Industrial farms degrade and erode precious topsoil64 tons per acre are being lost every year in some spots in our heartland." They suck up huge amounts of water - a lot of it from deep underground – essentially irreplaceable. And they use millions of pounds of antibiotics – a practice that leads to dangerous new bacteria." They also produce toxic run-off that pollutes our rivers, our oceans, and us!" The average American already has at least 13 pesticides in our bodies. And thanks to chemicals in the field, farmers and farm-workers have higher rates of many cancers."
So the sustainable farm is better for farmers and the environment but can it really feed the world? Study after study is saying yes! Sustainable farms produce as well... and in drought years even better. This is important news for small farmers who already grow 70 percent of the world's food - to increase production they don't have to follow the chemical path."
And the future we're all talking about feeding? The industrial farm requires more fossil fuels, water, and mined minerals - all stuff that will only get more expensive as it runs out. So down the line, the chemical path not only can't work for farmers; it won't be a choice at all.
Corporate agriculture doesn't reliably grow more food in the future - or even today. And that's strike two for this myth.
But we still haven't looked at the biggest hole of all. They say we need to double food production or we'll go hungry. Really?
We already have almost 3,000 calories a day available for every human being on Earth - more than enough.25 And that's after wasting a third of all food grown, and a lot of what is grown isn't food we eat directly. A third of the world's grain is going to livestock."
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In the U.S. our biggest crop is corn, but less than one percent of all corn planted is what we eat. Most goes to fuel or feed. Staying on this track, we could increase production and still have more hunger. To end it, everybody has to have the power to buy or grow the food they need. And that's what sustainable farming is all about. Strike three for this dangerous myth.
So the next time someone who makes frozen pizza - or toxic pesticides - tells you there's only one way to feed the future, tell them their story is full of holes. The evidence is clear: sustainable farmers prove we all can enjoy healthy food - and we each have power to make this happen. We can redirect our own food dollars and the billions in public money now going into the pockets of Big Ag. We can stand up and speak out for sustainable farmers here and around the world.
Visit FoodMyths.org to learn more, connect with the hundreds of groups at the frontlines of this struggle, and get involved.
Real Food Media Project 2