The Potential of Organic Agriculture to improve Food Security El potencial de la agricultura orgánica para mejorar la seguridad alimentaria

Organically produced food seems not to be able to feed the World’s Population. However, there are strong evidences that organic agriculture might help to alleviate the number of people suffering from hunger in some areas. The distribution of food and the access to food are often the main factors why people are undernourished. Aside, conventional agriculture often causes strong negative externalities. These may be reduced using organic fertilizers and by avoiding the use of synthetic agrochemicals. The holistic approach of organic agriculture, meaning the diversification of the production, may additionally improve the nutritional level in rural communities and thereby reduce significantly rates of malnutrition. Further, since the global market for organic products is expanding and the possibilities for smallholder farmers in developing countries to access markets increase. This can have very positive effects on the rural economies, triggering rural development. The increasing awareness of what people consume also have positive effects on the image agricultural production, since the consumers inform themselves better about the production pattern leading to a rising valuation of the farmers work. These facts seem to have retarding influence on rural-urban migratory processes. Organic agriculture may thus be an option in some areas to support strongly rural development.