{"id":6017,"date":"2016-03-15T16:12:08","date_gmt":"2016-03-15T20:12:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/?p=6017"},"modified":"2025-06-11T12:34:53","modified_gmt":"2025-06-11T16:34:53","slug":"organic-or-conventional-which-production-system-can-feed-the-world-sustainably","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/growingreturns\/2016\/03\/15\/organic-or-conventional-which-production-system-can-feed-the-world-sustainably\/","title":{"rendered":"Organic or conventional. Which production system can feed the world sustainably?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"suzy_friedman_277x387\"<\/a>Organic. Conventional. Locally grown. And the list goes on. The seemingly age-old debate of what system can best feed and sustain the planet is again at the front of my mind on\u00a0National Ag Day<\/a>.<\/p>\n

When I spoke at a recent Food Entrepreneurship Symposium event at Princeton University, an audience member asked me if organic is the best path forward to feed the planet sustainably. At Commodity Classic in New Orleans earlier this month, I spoke with growers about whether conventional ag is the way to feed a growing population.<\/p>\n

My answer: there is no silver bullet when it comes to sustainable agriculture. There is no single system, no one-size-fits-all prescription that can solve our food security and environmental sustainability challenges.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why we cannot afford to shut the door on any idea, or on any system of food production. Here\u2019s how organic and conventional compare on yields and environmental impacts, and why we need both systems, local and global production, and big and small farms in order to protect food security and the planet.<\/p>\n

Yield and intensification<\/strong><\/p>\n

To feed 9 billion people by 2050, we will undoubtedly need higher yields and in some places, intensified production.\u00a0 Which system comes out ahead? It depends:<\/p>\n