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To address some of the environmental problems associated with agricultural production, agriculture specialists,
farmers, and ranchers have been promoting and engaging in practices that encourage a sustainable system that protects the environment and increases the vitality of family farms. The
underlying goals of sustainability are agricultural productivity, profitability, and environmental quality. *
Sustainable agriculture or alternative agriculture is an approach to agriculture that "deliberately integrates
and takes advantage of naturally occurring beneficial interactions."*
Sustainable agriculture is not a singular approach to production agriculture, but rather a range of
practices--a system-- including:
- integrated pest management,
- organic farming,
- crop rotations,
- crop selection,
- planting practices that reduce soil erosion.
Sustainable agricultural practices are also applied to the production of livestock.
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FYI
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The term sustainability refers to economic development that takes full account of
the environmental consequences of economic activity and is based on the use of resources that can be replaced or renewed and therefore are not depleted
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(Source: Michael Allaby, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Ecology
[Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1994], 376.)
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A seminal study of conventional and alternative farming practices conducted by
the National Research Council in 1989 concluded that:
- Farmers who successfully adopt alternative farming systems generally
derive significant sustained economic and environmental benefits;
- Broader adoption of successful alternative systems would result in greater
economic benefits to farmers and in environmental gains for the nation;
- Federal policies, such as pesticide regulation, water regulation, and
agricultural commodity programs, work against the adoption of alternative agricultural practices;
- A "systems approach" to research is essential to the success and adoption of alternative agricultural practices;
- Farmers need information and technical assistance to develop the skills to implement alternative agricultural practices.*
A study conducted in 1995 by Delta Land and Community of Southern agricultural institutions and farmers, concluded
that "the lack of marketing alternatives is the key constraint to a more sustainable agricultural systems in the Southern United States."* The study also concluded that substantial research will be needed to support sustainable agriculture,
and that in turn, sustainable agriculture will help create a profitable rural economy and a healthy environment.
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FYI
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In 1999, Americans spent $618 billion for foods originating from the U.S. farms. Of
that only 20 percent was paid to farmers, the rest covered expenses for transportation, processing and distribution.
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Source: Farm Service Agency. www.fsa.usda.gov
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Since 1988, the United States Department of Agriculture has had a
sustainable agriculture competitive grants program--Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE). The Sustainable Agriculture Research and
Extension program (SARE) was established within USDA as a competitive grants program to promote research and education on sustainable
agriculture. Many land grant universities, like Texas A&M University, have SARE coordinators. From 1988 --2002, SARE has funded 1,900 projects
across the country. The research and education grants range from $30,000 to $200,000 while the producer grants --on-farm research grants-- average between $500 and $10,000.
In 1990, Federal Law mandated the Agriculture Extension Services to promote sustainable agriculture across the
country. The Food, Agriculture, Conservation Trade Act of 1990 authorized research and education on sustainable
agriculture. In the 2002 Farm Bill a new program, supported by sustainable agricultural advocates, called the Conservation Security Program, was established to provide financial support for the maintenance of good conservation
practices and to encourage the adoption of new ones. Unlike the Farm Bill's Conservation Reserve Program or some
other existing agriculture conservation programs, land would not have to be taken out of production in order for a
farmer or rancher to qualify for assistance. The Conservation Security Program is available to all farmers and ranchers
regardless of the types of crops or livestock produced. It provides incentives to diversify farming practices and reward environmenally sustainable ones
The United States Department of Agriculture has not set a goal for how many acres should be under a sustainable
production system. The State of Texas has not set a goal either.
Sustainable Agriculture in Texas
- Texas A & M Extension Service has established a sustainable production system effort to help both small and
large farms and ranches. The 1999 work plan for the Extension Service's sustainable program included
developing plans for field demonstrations, seminars, meetings, the publication and distribution of educational materials and providing technical assisstance to farmers.
- In 1982, Texas Department of Agriculture established an organic food and fiber certification and marketing
program.
- Texas Organic Acreage as of 2001:
- Cotton: 9,746 acres
- Wheat: 9,798 acres
- Soybeans: 9,445 acres
- Rice: 3,334 acres
- Corn: 3,032 acres
- peanuts: 2,431 acres
- As of 2002, The Texas Department of Agriculture reports there are approximately:
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FYI
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Organic food sales are growing at a rate of 20 percent per year in the
U.S...only 0.1 percent of agricultural research is devoted to organic farming practices.
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Source: "The Future Role of Pesticides in US Agriculture."
(National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council.)
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- 152 organic farmers
- 52 processors of food, fiber and feed
- 51 distributors (warehouse, brokers, traders, packing sheds)
- 910 retailers (grocery stores, health food stores)
- A Texas cotton cooperative provides 25 percent of the organic cotton produced in the United States.
Agriculture and Climate Protection
One of the environmental benefits of sustainable agriculture practices might be the reduction of greenhouse gases.
According to assessments conducted by scientists with the USDA's Natural Resource Conservation Service and
Environmental Defense, today's prevailing agriculture practices are causing an "accumulation of greenhouse gasses",
which, in turn, are responsible for "altering the Earth's climate." Because climate changes can have a disasterous
impact on agriculture, including crop losses and lowering yields, agriculture producers have a stake in influencing
climatic conditions. According NRCS and Environmental Defense, on-farm practices, such as conservation tillage,
planting trees, restoring grassland can reduce the emission of greenhouse gases * Both agricultural lands and forests,
if managed appropriately, can act as a "carbon sink," ---aka carbon sequestration---and reduce global warming.*
Agriculture producers can also help reduce greenhouse gases by capturing methane produced from manure, and using crop residues to produce biomass fuels.
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