In order these practices to become widely used, they need to receive adequate political, financial and public support. Industrial agriculture needs to focus its support for ecological farming practices. These ecological practices sustain farmers, who protect soils and water, in order to produce healthy food for people.
“We support farming, which values Nature’s circle of life, protects resources, bees and other critically important pollinators. Healthy food may be grown in harmony with the environment, and not in conflict with it,” Meglena Antonova, Greenpeace Bulgaria coordinator for its campaign for ecological farming, said. Industrial farming, with its heavy reliance on chemical pesticides, contaminates our water and soils and leads to loss of habitats and biodiversity. The survival of species and key ecosystem services like pollination are put at risk. The effect on the food that we eat is an obvious reason to worry. At the same time, another ecosystem, combining modern system and innovation with respect for nature and biological diversity, is there too.
Dr. Stoilko Apostolov presented comparative data regarding the presence of useful substances for conventionally grown and biologically grown products, like, for example, a research which proves 5% up to 90% higher concentration of Vitamin C in bio vegetables and fruit.
Pavlin Pantov, a bio-producer of apples shared a number of innovations, which he suggests as solutions in growing apple gardens. Some of them include treating with homeopathic cures, releasing pheromones for prevention of dissemination of the apple maggot, as well as usage of data from the meteorological station for forecasting appearance of pests or diseases.
Farmers who apply ecological farmer practices need urgent support, in order to continue their work. We insist on political support for ecological farming practices, in order that they continue to be able to meet the requirements of consumers and producers for healthy food and healthy farming. The governments in Europe and around the world have to support and step up the efforts for finding innovative ecological solutions in farming practices.
Greenpeace Bulgaria: it is possible that we have a food system without using pesticides
