orange trees

Organic & Beyond

Organic & Beyond

Science shows that organic agriculture can produce enough food to feed a growing world population while protecting our health and the environment.

Friends of the Earth works to advance organic for all: for our health, our families and our communities; for the farmers and farmworkers who grow our food; for the land that provides us with nourishment, the pollinators that make food production possible and the climate and ecosystems that sustain all of life.

Organic farming protects us from toxic pesticides, is more profitable for farmers and conserves the soil, water and biodiversity that we need to feed the world for generations to come. It is also a climate solution. In times of drought and flood, organic outperforms industrial agriculture. And compared with industrial farming, it conserves water, saves energy and captures more carbon in the soil.

The United States represents 43 percent of the global market for organic food, less than one percent of total U.S. cropland is devoted to organic farming. Expanding organic agriculture is a tremendous economic opportunity for American farmers and an important conservation strategy for our nation.

The science is clear: with agroecological methods of farming, like organic, we don’t have to rely on toxic pesticides and synthetic fertilizers to produce abundant food. That’s great news for people, pollinators and all living things. We know that the need for resilient, regenerative farming is more urgent than ever. Industrial agriculture costs the world an estimated $3 trillion annually in environmental damage, and climate change threatens future food security.

Resources

Rethinking No-Till

A new report from Friends of the Earth refutes the widely-held assumption that conventional no-till agriculture is “regenerative.” 

2024 Retailer Scorecard

Without pollinators, grocery shelves would run short of a wide assortment of fruits and vegetables, nuts, and beans.

New Roundup, New Risks

Friends of the Earth’s analysis finds that, on the fiftieth anniversary of its commercialization, Roundup sold to consumers is more toxic than ever before.

2023 Bee-Friendly Supermarket Scorecard

To spur a race to the top, FOE created a retailer scorecard to benchmark 25 of the largest grocery stores on pesticides & pollinator health.

Genetically Engineered Soil Microbes: Risks and Concerns

The release of live genetically engineered microbes in agriculture represents an unprecedented open-air genetic experiment.

Pesticides and Soil Health

This brief summarizes the science on a third critical principle of regenerative agriculture that receives comparatively little attention: minimizing use of pesticides.

We rated top retailers on organic offerings and pesticide reduction to protect pollinator health

bee with purple flowers
press icon

Read Latest News

Stay informed and inspired. Read our latest press releases to see how we’re making a difference for the planet.

victory stories icon

See Our Impact

See the real wins your support made possible. Read about the campaign wins we’ve fought for and won together.

donate icon

Donate Today

Help power change. It takes support from environmental champions like you to build a more healthy and just world.