| One of the tricky parts about transitioning to organic is that it takes 3 years to become certified. During those 3 years, you cannot yet charge organic prices for your produce, but you see a decrease in yield. Ultimately, organic growing methods do not result in a significant decrease in yield (and because organics weather climate extremes better, in some years you get better yield compared to conventional ag), but your yields go down before you build up biodiversity in your soil and they go back up.
Here's how the program works. They've got a budget of $500k - 20% to provide farmers with technical assistance and 80% to go to participating farmers. Farmers will receive a payment per acre per year for up to four years, up to a maximum of $7,500 per year or $30,000 total. Participating farmers will also be eligible for technical assistance. Farmers in the program will also have their soil assessed for carbon levels and they may be able to sell carbon offset credits as a result.
The State Rep behind this program, David Kessler, said that this program will benefit all PA residents for the following reasons:
- Cleaner water: Organic farming eliminates the use of pesticides and other chemicals. It will reduce the amount of nitrogen entering local drinking water supplies and the entire Chesapeake Bay watershed.
- Saving taxpayer money: Pennsylvania is facing a federal mandate to reduce the amount of nitrogen going into the Chesapeake Bay due to effects such as a 70 percent drop in the number of blue crabs caught now compared to 1990. The nitrogen reduction that organic farming can provide could save Pennsylvania taxpayers millions of dollars.
- Healthier food, healthier people: The Rodale Institute reports that11 important nutrients were on average 25 percent higher in organic foods compared to conventional foods.
- Cleaner air: If every farm in Pennsylvania used organic no-till practices, it would have a clean-air effect equal to taking 2 million to 3 million cars off the roads in terms of reducing emissions of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas pollutant.
- Preserving farmland: This initiative will help more farmers to keep farming.
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