Agro-ecology: The key to ensure long term food security

Sustainable agriculture and agro-ecological practices oriented towards ecosystem regeneration is the key to food security in the long run.

How are we going to feed an increasing population with increasing needs worldwide? The usual answer is: by increasing productivity through intensifying the use of pesticides, fertilizers, genetically modified organisms and other related intensive agricultural practices.

But this may not be the best or the only answer, especially when looking at the ongoing and projected performance of conventional agriculture. There is no denying that intensive practices have allowed a big step forward in yields and crops in the past 50 years. Yet, this model now shows its limits and drawbacks as ecosystems become saturated and degraded.

Intensive practices mean increased inputs for farmers, at higher costs as petrol prices increase. Fertilizers show decreasing performance on yields as soils and water become saturated and organic matter and life in soils are destroyed by an excess of these chemically based compounds.

It is now time to invest in agro-ecological practices, which have proven to be less costly for farmers and are bringing back natural fertilizers and increased soil life in the longer run. They are the key to the sustainable productivity of farms. Integrated organic practices, like composting, permaculture, multi-cropping and agroforestry, have multiple positive impacts on farmers and their ecosystems. They reintegrate agriculture within the natural life cycle of plants, enriching the soil with the dead leaves and branches of that same ecosystem – for free and forever, as long as the ecosystem is preserved. It is much more cost-effective than introducing artificial compounds from outside of the farm every year.

Soils are enriched naturally, and plants and trees bring in organic matter, maintaining water and moisture in the soil thanks to their rooting systems. They diversify farmers’ revenues (fruits, timber, medicinal plants and trees), sequester carbon and participate in better biodiversity preservation. Natural ecosystem regeneration through these practices is the key to long-term food security.

Food security is also achieved by taking into account food sovereignty strategies: having more food produced locally, avoiding dependence on world markets and international trade, and increasing the immunity of populations from climatic events in other parts of the world.

What is needed is the willingness to create synergies between intensive agriculture and agro-ecological practices and to develop best practices that can be applied on a large scale.

It is not a matter of alternative movements confronting agro-industries; it is a matter of joining complementary forces and turning sustainable agricultural practices into mainstream practices for the benefit of all: farmers, agro-industries and consumers. It is high time we share value and convert to sustainable agriculture, for the sake of long-term benefits and generations to come.

Author: Tristan Lecomte is the founder of Pur Projet (www.purprojet.com) which assists companies in developing “insetting” activities : offsetting the environmental and social footprint of a company locally and within its own supply chains, products and services. “Insetting”  brings in environmental and social innovation, and creates shared value, for the organizations themselves, local populations and the Planet. Transforming the pure intentions of a company, into pure projects. Tristan was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2008.

Photo Credit: Pur Project