Does organic farming present greater opportunities for employment and community development than conventional farming? A survey-based investigation in California and Washington
- 6 October 2017
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Taylor & Francis Ltd in Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems
- Vol. 42 (5), 552-572
- https://doi.org/10.1080/21683565.2017.1394416
Abstract
Organic farming may present opportunities for job creation over and above those provided by conventional agriculture; this study is one of a small number to have empirically examined this proposition. We compared countywide averages of hired farm labor from the USDA’s 2007 Agricultural Census with data collected through a mirrored survey of organic farmers in the same counties in Washington and California. Based on mixed-effects linear models to estimate differences (if any) in employment between organic farms and countywide farm averages, our analysis indicated that organic farms employed more workers per acre (95% CI: 2–12% more). Further, a greater proportion (95% CI: 13–43% more) of hired labor on organic farms worked 150 days or more compared to the average farm, suggesting increased labor requirements—and potentially more secure employment—on organic farms. We conclude the present study by considering possible policy implications of our findings with regard to organic agriculture as part of regional economic development strategies.Keywords
This publication has 27 references indexed in Scilit:
- Agroecology and Alternative Agrifood Movements in the United States: Towards a Sustainable Agrifood SystemJournal of Sustainable Agriculture, 2012
- Organic food consumers: what do we really know about them?British Food Journal, 2012
- Ecosystem Services in Biologically Diversified versus Conventional Farming Systems: Benefits, Externalities, and Trade-OffsEcology and Society, 2012
- Food crises, food regimes and food movements: rumblings of reform or tides of transformation?The Journal of Peasant Studies, 2011
- Food security and biodiversity: can we have both? An agroecological analysisAgriculture and Human Values, 2009
- Class Politics and Agricultural Exceptionalism in California's Organic Agriculture MovementPolitics & Society, 2008
- Social sustainability, farm labor, and organic agriculture: Findings from an exploratory analysisAgriculture and Human Values, 2006
- Survey and Analysis of Labour on Organic Farms in the UK and Republic of IrelandInternational Journal of Agricultural Sustainability, 2005
- Labour, Livelihoods and the Quality of Life in Organic Agriculture in EuropeBiological Agriculture & Horticulture, 2000
- Energy and labour efficiency for three pairs of conventional and alternative mixed cropping (pasture-arable) farms in Canterbury, New ZealandAgriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 1995