Is environmentally friendly soil care compatible with the healthy food it produces? In principle, yes, but it could also be no.
We have soil. We take care of it – microorganisms, natural substances, etc. We’ve agreed that it needs to be protected. And that organic methods are of primary importance. Sometimes, we leave it to natural processes. However, to provide food for people in the face of ever-increasing consumption (massive quantities at low prices), we begin to interfere with the soil – making it produce more and more to meet the numerous market demands. We haven’t abandoned the organic method. But if things are truly organic, it’s impossible for the soil to produce so much, and at low cost. What’s the formula for the “ideal result”? Well, we invent methods of exerting pressure on the soil, which we choose to label as “organic” through rose-colored glasses – they’re not truly organic, but since we can’t give up on quantity and low prices, we turn a blind eye. The result is today’s so-called “ecological farming.” The production is still done through industrial methods, but now with the “organic” stamp. What’s truly organic and what’s not is determined solely by the certification regulations. And their aim is not to protect the soil, but to satisfy the ever-growing human demands – the focus has long since shifted.
But if we still treat the soil industrially, even “organic industrially,” doesn’t the harm ultimately come back to humans?
In the new podcast, we offer a conversation with nature-loving farmer Krasimir Stefanov from the village of Oreshak, near Aksakovo. We discuss the retrospective mentioned above – how agriculture has evolved over more than a century. We also talk about values, misconceptions… We raise questions. Krasimir is not a scientist; he simply loves to read and stay informed. He shares his thoughts without pretense – what he has understood and reflected upon while tying up his tomato plants…
