Environment Beat Story

Members of the Champaign-Urbana organic community, a group which includes organic farmers and grocers, would like the University of Illinois to commit more research funding to organic agriculture instead of genetically modified crops.

According to a 2007 U.S. Department of Agriculture Census report, cash receipts for crop-related sales in Illinois totaled more than $13 billion. Revenue from organic produce comprised less than one percent of the total that year. The Midwest produces almost 40 percent of the world’s corn and soybeans and much of the current agricultural research at UI is focused on the development of genetically modified seeds.

In 2007 the College of ACES appropriated $62 million to fund agriculture research at UI, according to a report released by the college. It is unclear how much, if any, of the funding was used to support organic agricultural research. Jozef Kokini, associate dean of research for the College of ACES was not available for comment.

Most recently, there has only been one research project related to organic agriculture at UI and it is currently inactive as researches worked to find new funding sources, said Wesley Jarrell, professor in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences (NRES). Jarrell is also interim director of the newly established Environmental Change Institute, which solicits proposals from members of the UI community related to environmental initiatives.

Aside from his work at UI, Jarrell, 60, owns Prairie Fruit Farms and Creamery, a certified organic farm, with his wife Leslie Cooperband. The 39-acre farm is located about 10 minutes from downtown Urbana on North Lincoln Avenue. A one story log home and a barn that houses goats, punctuate a flat and dormant landscape sprinkled with rows of fruit trees planted near the house. Jarrell and Cooperband also raise vegetables and hay.

“There is nowhere near the (research) base in organic agriculture as there is with conventional agriculture,” Jarrell said.

Because organic agriculture uses systemic farming practices that require the farmer to consider the entire ecosystem of the farm and discourages single inputs for such concerns as pest control, it does not lend itself to the kind of research that occurs within conventional agriculture, Jarrell said.

“(Organic agriculture) is not amenable to the simple statistics that all aggies grew up with where you vary one variable in an experiment (which allows you) to draw nice curves and get significant differences,” he said.

The fundamental differences between organic and conventional agricultural methods are echoed by Harriet Behar, organics specialist for the Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service (MOSES). Based in Wisconsin, MOSES is, according to their Web site, a nonprofit out-reach organization that works to promote sustainable and organic agriculture.

“Companies are not going to invest in a systems approach because it will not yield the kind of financial return they want,” Behar said. She added, “A lot of university extension agents have been skeptical of organics because it doesn’t have a lot of science based research. We’re trying to change that.”

Jon Cherniss, a tall and spry-looking 48-year-old, owns Blue Moon Farm, an organic operation located about eight and a half miles northeast of Prairie Fruits and Creamery in Urbana. Cherniss cultivates 40 to 50 varieties of produce on 12 acres of land and sells it at the Urbana Farmer’s Market. The farm supports six hoop houses (a term for green houses without electricity) and a red barn – all clustered together in the center of the property. Cherniss agrees that the drive for a financial dividend influences a lot of agricultural research.

“Scientist understand the need to protect genetic diversity, but they want a return on capital in the short-term,” he said. “Crop diversity is more important than anything. It’s what makes my farm strong.”

From the consumer’s perspective the proliferation of genetically modified seed is a cause of concern said Jacqueline Hannah, general manager of Common Ground CO-OP located in Urbana.

“What we know is that seed diversity is dropping constantly. We lose varieties of fruits and vegetables all the time. (We’re) literally down to three types of corn being grown in America and if we have a disease that wipes out one of them, then (we’ve) got a huge problem,” she said.

Since 1974 Common Ground CO-OP has sold local and organic food and produce to the Champaign-Urbana community. The co-op also contributes to the local community by hosting “seed swap” workshops that are designed to educate people about the importance of saving seed from their gardens.

Although there is not a lot of current research focused on organic agriculture, Hannah said the demand for organic produce and the growth of small farms is a cause for optimism.

“To me it is the American way. People have always had a passion for growing their own food and we are going back to that passion.”