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Costof Food Organic and Non-Organic
Organicfoods can be described as foodstuffs which have been produced by anagricultural system that entirely depends on the natural ecosystemrather than artificial inputs such as fertilizers (Valliant, par3).On the other hand, non-organic or conventional foods are producedwith the help of fertilizers, pesticides, drugs, additives, geneticmodification to name but a few. Since organic foods are producedwithout the use of various external inputs, one would expect the costof production to be less hence cheaper than the non-organicfoodstuffs. However, Valliant points out that, on average, organicfoods cost much higher than the conventional equivalents (par 4). Asa matter of fact, many people prefer organic foods over the regularones but with the sluggishly recovering economy from the deeprecession, they cannot afford them. This paper aims to discuss someof the factors that make organic foods more expensive than thenon-organic counterparts.
Accordingto (Valliant, par2), since organic foods are produced natural with nouse of chemicals, it means more labor. Conventional farmers rely onexternal inputs such as chemicals, which make work easier andefficient hence cutting the cost of production. On the contrary,organic farming is labor-intensive since activities such as weeding,planting and harvesting rely on workers making the cost of productiongo up. Another factor that makes the cost of organic food higher thanthe non-organic ones is its high demand. Valliant argues that thedemand for organic foods overwhelms its supply making its pricesrocket (par, 3). Each and every year, the retail price of organicfoods keeps on going high because many people all over the world arewilling to spend more on them than the conventional counterparts.Studies have proved that organic food production accounts for lessthan 1% of the global food production, and hence, the supply is toosmall to meet the demand. On the contrary, conventional farmers havevast lands for cultivation, meaning the supply is always high hencelow prices.
Non-organicfarmers use cheap fertilizers such as sewage sludge and chemicalfertilizers hence their produce is low-priced. On the contrary,organic farmers disdain all the inexpensive solution that cancontaminate their foods. Instead, they rely on compost and animalmanure, which is expensive to buy and transport hence making theorganic food prices go high. Additionally, organic foods incur higherpost-harvest handling cost compared to non-organic ones. Conventionalfoods are transported in large quantities because their production ishigh, a factor that makes their prices low. On the other hand,natural foods are transported in small amounts since their productionis low, resulting in higher costs (Valliant, par6). Moreover, organicfarms are located far from major towns meaning higher transportationcost which is reflected in the retail price of natural foods.
Anotherfactor that makes the cost of organic food high is the acquisition ofthe certification, which is a costly and challenging undertaking.Besides the customary agricultural procedures, the farm amenities andcultivation practices must adhere to the set regulations, which maysometimes involve the change of the farming system and acquisition ofmore farm equipment (Valliant, par7). Qualified workers ought to beemployed to sustain updated farm records that must be presented forassessment any time required. Also, organic farmers are required topay an annual fee which is not less than $400. On the contrary,conventional farmers do not require certification meaning they do notincur any extra expenses.
Workcited
ValliantMelissa.Top10 reasons why organic food is more expensive.Retrieved from: http://www.hellawella.com/top-10-reasons-organic-food-is-so-expensive/4727