) The phenomenon of organic agriculture has started in the 1930s and 1940s in the developed countries as a consequence of the raised dangerous effects of using synthetic fertilizers and pesticides in agriculture on both health and environment. In other words, they were looking for safe food that is free of pesticides and additives (El-Meliegy, 2010). Population began growing rapidly in the Western world during the industrial revolution (1760-1830). The most significant increase in the world's population has been since the 1950s, mainly due to increases in agricultural productivity and then with technology development and medical advancements, more diseases can be detected and after that reasons were revealed.

1. Large scale organic
farming
Dinithi Vihanga De Silva

2.  What is organic farming?
 Goal
 History
 Advantages & disadvantages
 What is conventional farming ?
 Comparison (organic Vs conventional farming)
 Components of the organic farming
 Major challengers and modern solutions for large
scale organic farming?
 Organic farming in Sri Lanka?
 Certification of Organic crop production
 Conclusion
 References
Content

3. What is organic
farming?
Organic agriculture is a
production system that sustains the health of
soils, ecosystems and people. It relies on
ecological processes, biodiversity and cycles
adapted to local conditions, rather than the use of
inputs with adverse effects. Organic
agriculture combines tradition, innovation
and science to benefit the shared environment
and promote fair relationships and a good
quality of life for all involved.(Sadek, E.E. and Shelaby,
A.A., 2011. )
Figure 01 – large scale organic field

4. Father of organic farming
The founder of modern organic farming is
the British botanist Sir Albert Howard, who
from 1905 to 1924, working in India,
documented traditional Indian farming
practices and defined them as better than
the conventional agriculture according to his
own knowledge.
https://books.google.lk/books?id=XC_YDwAA
QBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=soil+health+by
+albert+howard&hl=en&sa=X&redir_esc=y#v=
onepage&q=soil%20health%20by%20albert%2
0howard&f=false
Howard, A., 2010. An agricultural
testament. [New York]: [Oxford
University Press].
Howard, A. and Major, D., 2020.
The Soil and Health. La Vergne: A
Distant Mirror.
https://books.google.lk/books?id=0fJnvQEAC
AAJ&dq=agricultural%20treatment%20%20by
%20albert%20howard&source=gbs_book_ot
her_versions
Figure 02- Sir Albert Howard Figure 03- book of Agricultural
Testament
Figure 04- The soil & health

5. Goal of the organic farming…
Organic farming aims at
the human welfare
without any harm to the
environment which is the
foundation of human life
itself.

6. History
 The civilization of ancient Egypt was indebted to the Nile River and its dependable seasonal
flooding. Egyptians are credited as being one of the first groups of people to practice
agriculture on a large scale. This was possible because of the ingenuity of the Egyptians as they
developed basin irrigation. (Kees, Herman., 1961. Ancient Egypt: A cultural topography)
 In Sri Lanka, first evidence of organic farming has been recorded in ancient palm leaf
manuscripts from the era of king Rawana & It has been long practiced of sun based tradition
with using traditional pest control methods and fertilizers to bring up their plants and later in
the historical books ( Mahawansa etc.) and also stone scripts from other kings also have been
mentioned the organic farming. (Irangani, M.K.L. and Shiratake, Y., 2013.)
 Organic movement began in the 1930s and 1940s as a reaction to agriculture's growing
reliance on synthetic fertilizers. Artificial fertilizers had been created during the 18 th century ,
initially with superphosphates and then ammonia derived fertilizers mass-produced using the
Haber-Bosch process developed during World War I .
 Sir Albert Howard is widely considered to be the “father of organic farming” . (Howard, A.,
2010. An agricultural testament) & Rudolf Steiner , an Austrian philosopher, made important
strides in the earliest organic theory with his biodynamic agriculture.
Figure 05- pyramid wall paintings
Figure 06- palm leaf manuscripts

7. Why do we
need organic
farming ?
why do turn back
to the organic
farming instead of
modern farming?
What are the
advantages of
organic
farming ?
Is that large
scale organic
farming
possible?

8. • Increase long-term soil fertility.
• Healthy food
• Eco friendly
• Minimum soil degradation
• Control pests and diseases without
harming the environment.
• Ensure that water stays clean and safe.
• Use resources which the farmer already
has, so the farmer needs less money to
buy farm inputs.
• Produce nutritious food, feed for
animals
• High quality crops to sell at a good
price.
• Soil conservation
Advantages
of organic
farming?

9. Disadvantages of
Organic
Farming?
 More expensive
 More blemishes on the crop
 Smaller yield
 Need Larger area
 Needed more organic fertilizers but production are
low.
 More farm workers needed (Muscănescu, A.,
2013.)
https://www.eatingwell.com/article/291645/farmers-cant-find-enough-workers-
to-harvest-crops-and-fruits-and-vegetables-are-literally-rotting-in-fields/
Figure 07- farm workers work in the fields

10. Characteristics:
Conventional agriculture has been defined as ''capital intensive, large-scale, highly
mechanized agriculture with monoculture of crops and extensive use of artificial
fertilizers, herbIcides, and pesticides with intensive animal husbandry'' (Knorr and
Watkins, 1984).
Definition:
Conventional farming uses synthetic chemicals and
fertilizers to maximize the yield of a particular crop
or set of crops, which are typically genetically
modified. This method requires a significant
amount of chemical and energy input and weakens
the ecology of a landscape.
Conventional farming
Figure 08- spraying the synthetic fertilizers to the
fields

11. Table 01- Comparison chart of basic differences
between conventional and organic farming
References : Muscănescu, A., 2013. Organic versus
conventional: advantages and disadvantages of organic
farming. Scientific Papers Series Management, Economic
Engineering in Agriculture and Rural Development, 13(1),
pp.253-256.

12. Organic farming
Large scale
Small scale
Figure 09- small scale organic field Figure 10- large scale organic field

13. Components of
the organic
farming
Green
manure
Crop
rotation
biofertilizer
Vermi-
compost
mulching
composting
Natural
weed
control
Natural
pest
control

14. 1.Organic fertilizers
Green manure Legume plants as
nitrogen fixers
vermicompost Aquatic plants peat Animal dung /waste
sewage Algae compost Sludge Root residues Arbuscular Mycorrhizal
Fungi (AMF)

15. 2. Green manure
Definition : A fertilizer consisting of
growing plants that are ploughed back
into the soil that crops grown within a
rotation.
purposes :
 Building soil organic matter and soil
structure.
 Supplying nitrogen and other
nutrients for a following crop.
 Preventing leaching of soluble
nutrients from the soil.
 Providing ground cover to prevent
damage to soil structure.

16. Preferred nutrient source
for home gardening as
well as for organic
farming.
Non-toxic
Nature friendly
Improves the soil
quality,
Derived by composting
organic waste by using
various species of
earthworms.(Lim, S.L.,
Wu, T.Y., Lim, P.N. and
Shak, K.P.Y., 2015. )
Highly nutrient rich
organic fertilizer
3. Vermi-compost

17. ADVANTAGES
• Decreasing water loss due to evaporation.
• Reducing weed growth by reducing the amount of light
reaching the soil.
• Preventing soil erosion.
• Increasing the number of micro-organisms in the top soil
• Adding nutrients to the soil and improving soil structure.
• Adding organic matter to the soil.
4. Mulching
Mulching means covering the
ground with a layer of loose
material such as compost,
manure, straw, dry grass, leaves
or crop residues. Figure 11- covering the ground using straws
Figure 12- covering the ground using dry grasses

18. 5. Composting
Compost is organic matter (plant and animal
residues) which has been rotted down by the
action of bacteria and other organisms, over
a period of time.
Advantages:
• Compost improves the structure of the soil. This allows more air into
the soil, improves drainage and reduces erosion.
• Compost improves soil fertility by adding nutrients and by making it
easier for plants to take up the nutrients already in the soil. This
produces better yields.
• Compost improves the soil’s ability to hold water. This stops the soil
from drying out in times of drought.
Figure 15- large scaled compost manufacture
Figure 14-
small scale
compost
manufacture

19. 6. Natural weed control methods
 Crop rotation
 Mulches, which cover the soil and stop weed seeds from
germinating
 Hand-weeding or the use of mechanical weeding
techniques
 Planting crops close together within each bed, to prevent
space for weeds to emerge
 Green manures or cover crops to outcompete weeds
 Soil cultivation carried out at repeated intervals and at the
appropriate time

20. • Careful planning and crop choice
• Good cultivation practice
• Crop rotation
• Encouraging useful predators that eat pests
• Increasing genetic diversity
• Using natural pesticides, e.g. neem
• Choosing crops with a natural resistance to specific pests and diseases.
• Local varieties are better at resisting local pest and diseases than introduced varieties.
• Timely planting of crops to avoid the period when a pest does most damage.
• Companion planting with other crops that pests will avoid, such as onion or garlic.
7. Natural Pest control methods

21. Challengers Solutions
High input of the cost Use cheap and neglected materials to produce
organic fertilizers & produce own fertilizers
Large land Vertical farming
Low yield Adding biofertilizers, green manures,
vermicompost etc.
Organic fertilizers Use algae, waste materials, sewage, peats, invasive
aquatic plants ( ex: water hyacinth) to produce
organic fertilizers
Dependency of animal agriculture Not depending only the animal waste to produce
fertilizers
Can use other methods like invasive aquatic plants
(in Sri Lanka) & Algae (USA)
(https://algae.ucsd.edu/)/ California center for algae
biotechnology US San Diego
Major challengers and modern solutions for large scale
organic farming?

22. Organic farming in Sri Lanka

23. I. International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) , Brussels Belgium
II. National standards for organic production (NPOP), Govt. of India
III. European Union regulations for organic production rules equivalent to EC.No.834/2007
IV. United States organic standards USDANOP (National Organic Program)
V. Codex Alimentarius , Rome Italy ( by AFO)
VI. Control Union (SKAL, Netherlands)
VII. Institute for Market Ecology – IMO, Switzerland
VIII. NASAA, Australia
IX. Naturland, Germany
X. EcoCert, Germany
XI. Demeter and BioSuisse, Switzerland
XII. Organic Farmers and Growers Ltd, United Kingdom
Certification
of Organic
crop
production
( standards of
certification)

24. Conclusion…

25.  Muscănescu, A., 2013. Organic versus conventional: advantages and disadvantages of
organic farming. Scientific Papers Series Management, Economic Engineering in Agriculture
and Rural Development, 13(1), pp.253-256.
 Knorr, D. and Watkins, T.R., 1984. Alterations in food production.
 Kees, H., 1961. Ancient Egypt: A cultural topography.
 Irangani, M.K.L. and Shiratake, Y., 2013. Indigenous techniques used in rice cultivation in Sri
Lanka: An analysis from an agricultural history perspective.
 Howard, A., 2010. An agricultural testament. [New York]: [Oxford University Press].
 Howard, A. and Major, D., 2020. The Soil and Health. La Vergne: A Distant Mirror.
 Sadek, E.E. and Shelaby, A.A., 2011. Organic agriculture in Egypt: production economics and
challenges (a case study of fayoum governorate). Journal of American Science, 7(9).
 Garg, A. and Balodi, R., 2014. Recent trends in agriculture: vertical farming and organic
farming. Adv Plants Agric Res, 1(4), p.00023.
 Lim, S.L., Wu, T.Y., Lim, P.N. and Shak, K.P.Y., 2015. The use of vermicompost in organic
farming: overview, effects on soil and economics. Journal of the Science of Food and
Agriculture, 95(6), pp.1143-1156.
References….

26. Acknowledgement

27. Thank you…