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Industrial farming emits 2-3 times more GHGs per unit of land compared to organic farming


"CO2 emissions per hectare of organic agriculture systems are 48 to 66 percent lower than in conventional systems." AH math: (rounds 48% to 50%) O = organic N = industrial If O + N = 30, and O is 50% less than N, then O=10 and N=20 -- 10 is 50% less than 20 (20x0.5=10; 20-10=10); and 20 is 2 times more than 10 -- thus, Industrial farming emits 2 times more GHGs than organic farming. If O + N = 40, and O is 66% less than N, then O=10 and N=30 -- 10 is 66% less than 30 (30x0.66=20; 30-20=10); and 30 is 3 times more than 10 -- thus, Industrial farming emits 3 times more GHGs than organic farming. Taken together: Industrial farming emits 2-3 times more GHGs per unit of land compared to organic farming

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Thomas Alföldi et al., "Chapter 2: Organic Agriculture and the Environment" in Organic Agriculture, Environment and Food Security, ed. Nadia El-Hage Scialabba and Caroline Hattam, (Rome: FAO, 2002), accessed November 13, 2014, from FAO Corporate Document Repository, http://www.fao.org/docrep/005/Y4137E/y4137e02b.htm#P819_106360.

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