RESOURCE HUB: REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE
What is Regenerative Agriculture?
Regenerative agriculture are practices and principles of farming that restores the ecosystems and by rehabilitating the soil and reducing pollution.
How does regenerative agriculture work?
By using no-till farming and cover crops to restore the soil, regenerative agriculture takes a holistic approach to harness the natural systems that already occur to enhance soil fertility and maintain biodiversity. Cover crops build up the organic matter in the soil and work together with the microorganisms to maintain the natural biological processes of producers, consumers and decomposers. A natural approach to weed and pest control uses shade and natural predators to reduce the need for pesticides and herbicides. Many of the concepts come from farming techniques of ancient civilization.
What are the benefits of regenerative farming?
Healthier soil holds more water to reduce erosion and point source pollution, thus conserving water resources and mitigating contamination. More organic matter promotes biodiversity and acts as a carbon sync reducing greenhouse gas air pollution that curbs the causes of climate change. More water and nutrients in the soil helps produce better yields and more nutritious food.
Some Regenerative Agriculture statistics
- https://rodaleinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/rodale-white-paper.pdf
- 1% organic matter would increase the water holding capacity of the soil by 21,668 gallons/acre–
- “The current global food system, propelled by an increasingly powerful transnational food industry, is responsible for around half of all human produced greenhouse gas emissions: anywhere between a low of 44% to a high of 57%. “
According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, “there is a growing recognition among policymakers that organic agriculture has a significant role to play in addressing food security issues, land degradation impacts, poverty alleviation and climate change in Africa.”
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