Farm gate profitability of organic and conventional farming systems in the tropics

Summary in the original language of the document

Systematic studies on the economic competitiveness of organic farming systemscompared to conventional farming systems are particularly lacking in tropicalenvironments. In tropical regions, the evaluation of organic production systemstypically concentrates on main cash crops earmarked for export markets.Consequently, crops grown in rotation or in association with these main crops havebeen largely overlooked, with their contribution to farm profitability is oftenconsidered negligible due to perceived challenges in securing premium organicprices. To address this knowledge gap, we conducted an analysis of twelve years ofeconomic data from four long-term farming system comparison trials in tropicalregions. Our objective was to delve into the economic competitiveness of bothorganic and conventional production systems at the system level, considering notonly the main cash crops but also the associated and rotational crops. The outcomesof our analysis revealed that in three out of four systems, the gross margins oforganic and conventional systems were comparable. In the fourth system, the grossmargins of the organic system were 13.13% lower, equivalent to $169.8 per hectareper year compared to the conventional system. Furthermore, the contribution ofcrops grown in rotation with these main crops remains similar even when premiumprices are not obtained. In instances where premium prices for non-cash crops aresecured, their profitability can even surpass that of cash crops. Additionally, in thecase of agroforestry, companion plantings serve as valuable additions for both dietaryand income diversity. Thesefindings suggest that the profitability of an agriculturalsystem is not solely dependent on whether it is organic or conventional but isinstead influenced by various system components. The emphasis should shift from asingular focus on main cash crops to a more comprehensive understanding thatconsiders the entire spectrum of crops within a farming system.