There are three fundamental rules of financial planning: (1) save continuously, (2) invest in a diversified portfolio of assets and (3) exercise patience via a long-term strategy. This common-sense advice is at the heart of Conservation Agriculture (CA), a land-management philosophy that seeks to reconcile the technologies of modern agriculture with the time-worn practices of organic farming. These include multi-crop systems that minimise risk from weather, pests and markets, and the spatial and temporal rotation of crops. When integrated, these practices will increase soil organic matter (carbon), which improves the water holding capacity and the nutrient status of soils. Agroforestry systems are particularly advantageous because deep-rooted perennials contribute to evapotranspiration, which supports regional rainfall, while individual farmers benefit by reducing energy and labour costs, as well as locking in a long-term revenues stream. Agribusiness is not unsympathetic to common-sense advice, and most farmers have diversified their choice of crops and adopted minimum tillage technologies. Nonetheless, they almost invariably choose industrial commodities (soy, maize, sorghum, sunflower, cotton) and genetically engineered varieties designed for use with herbicides. Plantations are almost always composed of exotic species (eucalyptus, pine or gmelina). A few corporate entities have allocated a portion of their land to an integrated production model known as ILFP (Integração Lavoura-Pecuária-Floresta), a type of industrial agroforestry that seeks to optimise the benefits from three major production systems (row crops, livestock, tree farms). Nonetheless, the overwhelming majority of large-scale farmers are enamoured with (addicted to) the financial returns from monoculture, and they are not…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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