Sen Ruderman, where is the proof

[Permie]

One thing to take into account Rob is that Organic and Permaculture are VERY different things. I have seen conventional farms that are orders of magnitude more sustainable than some organic farms. I won't touch the vast majority of industrially farmed organic produce you can buy in the big markets. I also agree with you that some organic food isn't necessarily healthier than some conventional foods. I'll take a peach fertilized with synthetic fertilizer but no pesticides and via a farmer who works hard to ensure proper nutrient balance any day over an organic peach sprayed with Rotenone. Conversely, some organic producers do a fantastic job and I'll eat their food all day long. But it takes a lot of education to know the difference unfortunately.

I suspect that our future survival will be dependent upon sustainable farming practices in which Permaculture practices will take the lead. Some GMO may indeed play a part in certain circumstances, I don't know. What I do know is that which is not sustainable will, by definition, collapse at some point. I also suspect that it is critically important that we move towards sustainable, hyper-local food production. With threats such as peak oil, climate change, economic calamity, etc, I suspect that the way the world will be fed is locally. That of course means some locations are inherently not sustainable due to population density and usable land. Yet another reason the Big Island of Hawaii is so attractive to me.