>STUDIES SHOW SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE MEASURES UP TO
>CONVENTIONAL YIELDS 11 Jul 1996
and asked:
>i'm wondering if anyone can provide me with information on how to
>obtain a copy of the 'study just released by North Dakota State
>University' thanks, craig
Sorry, I don't have info on the North Dakota sustainable agriculture study,
but, if studies of the relative economic merits of conventional vs.
sustainable farming systems interests you, you might want to track
down the following reference:
Stonehouse, D.P., S.F. Weise, T. Sheardown, R.S. Gill, C.J. Swanton.
1996. A Case Study Approach to Comparing Weed Management
Strategies under Alternative Farming Systems in Ontario. Canadian
Journal of Agricultural Economics 44: 81-99.
The sample sizes were small, and (as is usually the case) the authors
recommended broader-scale study to verify their results, which
included:
"Linear programming model results for whole-farm analyses revealed
highest net farm incomes on organic farms and lowest on conventional
farms, in part due to lower overhead costs on organic farms, and in part
due to greater enterprise diversification and to greater self-sufficiency in
material inputs."
I hope this helps.
R. Macgregor
PEI Dept. of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry, Charlottetown, PE
rdmacgregor@gov.pe.ca (902) 368-4847