WHAT ARE AGROCHEMICALS AND WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ORGANIC AND INORGANIC FERTILIZERS?
(and keep it simple-KISS) Agrochemicals are chemicals that are used in farming to control insects, plant disease, and weeds. Fertilizers are compounds put on soil to promote plant growth. Organic fertilizers are those obtained from living organic substances (compost from plants and manure from animals); inorganic fertilizers are made from non-living inorganic chemicals and minerals. I was raised on a farm in Kentucky. When studying agriculture in high school and college (1956), before going into science, I was unaware that modern farming practices would result in foods deficient in nutrients. After changing my major to medical science and taking courses in nutrition, microbiology, and biochemistry, it soon became apparent that the agrochemicals and inorganic fertilizers would have adverse effects on the fertility of the soil, the nutritional content of foods, and the health of man. My father, who returned to the farm after World War II (1946), switched from organic to inorganic fertili
