Organic farming is the way forward for agriculture in the Caribbean, according to sustainable development consultant Mervyn Claxton:
CARICOM countries should be looking at organic agriculture to reduce carbon emissions in the atmosphere and boost food production, international consultant and former United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) representative to the Caribbean, Mervyn Claxton has said.
He was delivering a lecture as part of the Distinguished Lecture Series on the Environment entitled “Indigenous Knowledge and Sustainable Development” last week at the University of West Indies (UWI), St Augustine. The event was hosted by the Cropper Foundation and the Housing and Environment Ministry.
Claxton pointed to recent drought problems and high food prices locally and said studies showed that organically managed soils could convert carbon dioxide from a greenhouse gas to a food-producing asset. “This would be no small benefit, considering that a substantial drop in food production, high food prices, and food scarcity are widely predicted as a consequence of climate change,” he said.
He said organic agriculture also reduced soil erosion and prevented loss of soil fertility, while discontinuing the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides.
This would lead to cleaner waterways and coastal waters, cleaner beaches and healthier coral reefs, which would be of great value to the tourism sector.
Read the full article from the Trinidad Express.
[Photo: annemary]
