Commercial VS. Organic Agriculture
Organic farming is becoming more and more popular with farmers and consumers alike. The benefits of products grown in a sustainable manner are many. Organic farming is better for the environment and safer to use for farmers and field hands. Our Cafe Altura coffee is a perfect example of the quality that organic farming produces.
Our farmers use organic practices that follow and foster the coffee tree's natural cycle. Organic cultivation and fertilization provide nutrients that produce a rich healthy crop. Organic farming benefits our planet as a whole as it conserves and enriches valuable topsoil while enhancing the long term production of each farm.
Commercial farming involves chemical fertilizers, insecticides and herbicides. Farms use chemical fertilizers to boost production. While producing a larger crop, the fertilizer disturbs the micro life of the topsoil and weakens the trees by forcing them to over produce. The trees become more susceptible to insect infestation and the valuable topsoil loses its fertility.
AGRICULTURAL COMPARISON
COMMON COMMERCIAL PRACTICES
- Trees planted every 2 meters.
- Use of chemical fertilizers.
- Herbicides are used for weed control.
- Carcinogenic pesticides are used for pest control.
- Husks may be removed using fast acting chemicals or rinsing agents.
ORGANIC FARMING PRACTICES
- Trees planted every 4 meters, allowing each tree to get the proper amount of nutrients.
- We use only compost for fertilizer.
- Weeds are hand cut by machete.
- We use companion planting, IPPM and humus development for natural pest control.
- Our husks are removed by mechanical means.
- Leguminous shade trees and cover crops are planted to fix nitrogen into the soil.
- Each tree is basined and mulched.
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