“Just one 320-acre farm that goes organic is equal to 117 cars taken off the road or 1,462,500 miles without driving!” That’s the conclusion of Chris Hill and Greg Bowman, contributors to the Rodale Institute’s NewFarm.org website, which has been heavily involved in research on the impacts of conventional and organic farming.

It seems that buying organic food, whether it’s oranges, carrots, soybeans or lentils, can be an effective way to reduce your carbon footprint and live green. That’s because organic farming is a powerful atmospheric scrubber. By growing various crops, organic crops are better able to sequester carbon. Otherwise, they serve as a carbon sink.

But why is growing organic food better for carbon sequestration than growing conventional food with fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides? Throughout their 23-year comparison of organic and conventional corn and soybean farming systems, these were the conclusions gathered:

o Retention of organic matter: A general rule in agriculture is that the more organic matter that is retained in the soil, the more carbon that is sequestered. Organic farming generally uses animal manure and cover crops as a means of amending the soil; Conventional farming, on the other hand, uses chemicals that deplete the organic matter found in the soil. Pound for pound, organic farming adds rather than removes organic matter from the soil and thus helps sequester carbon.

o Lower fuel consumption: Organic farming systems use around a third less fossil fuels compared to conventional farming systems due to less reliance on heavy machinery. This reduced reliance on fossil fuels results in fewer greenhouse gases being expended to produce the same amount of food.

These two factors constitute a great climate solution. In fact, if the US were to participate in the Kyoto protocol, it could achieve 73% of the proposed goals by converting the 160 million acres of corn and soybean farmland to organic farming methods. That would be like taking almost 60 million cars off the road.

So, in addition to the better taste and higher nutrient content of organic foods, organic foods can help you reduce your greenhouse gas emissions! Buying organic produce at the supermarket is therefore a great way to reduce your carbon footprint.

If you want to further improve your environmental impact, grow your own organic food using compost, natural fertilizers, and soil amendments! This is a cost-effective way to get your daily nutrients and a fun activity for the whole family.