What is the future for organic farming; for example, will it ever completely take over from conventional food production?
It is unlikely that organic farming will completely replace conventional farming. It has been estimated that without the production of artificial nitrogen fertiliser, the carrying capacity of the world’s fertile land is enough for only about 60 per cent of the current population of six billion people. As the world’s population approaches an estimated nine billion by the year 2050, our dependence on artificial fertiliser will almost certainly become even greater. Organic supporters point to the huge food wastage and excessive consumption in the developed countries which could, if more equitably distributed, make up for at least some of the current and predicted shortages. Yet this is a political problem, and one that is very unlikely to be solved in the near future. Some scientists believe there will be a gradual amalgamation of organic and conventional farming to produce a system – or rather systems, appropriate to different situations – that employ the best aspects of each form of far
