It's Not As Easy As You Might Think To Be A Green Farmer

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You could be under the impression that staying green as a farmer is simple. It’s understandable why you might feel this way since it almost seems built into the industry. But the world of farming has changed over recent years. You might find that a farm has more similarities to an industrial factory compared to a forest. So what are the issues for farmers who want to stay green and are there ways to get around them? Let’s find out.

Increase Reliance On Technology

Most milk dairy farms have around ten workers, five hundred cows, and one massive machine. That’s right, the age of when farming was completed by hand is nearly over. Make way for machinery that uses a huge amount of energy and is a lot more productive. Rather than hiring workers to milk the cows by hand, machines are used that automated the process. The cows walk in, get milked and walk back out again. In some farms, cows live on what are massive turn wheels. As it goes around it will be the cow’s turn to get milked.

Conservation Efforts

Farmers are also under pressure to conserve the environment that they are using. For instance, tree farmers are expected to replant any tree that they cut down in an effort to keep the world green. Don’t forget that cutting down trees increases the amount of CO2 that eventually hits the Ozone Layer. If we want to save the planet we need more trees and farmers who have to be prepared. The best way to deal with this issue is to use a service such as Future Forest Consulting. They will help you choose what trees can be used and how to ensure that you minimize the impact your work has on the environment.

Lately, farmers have faced increased pressure from environmental groups to increase their level of conservation. But farmers often struggle to fit this solution into their budget.

Intensive Farming

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To save on costs, many farmers have turned towards using intensive farming methods. We have already discussed one of these solutions when talking about milking dairy cows by machine. Intensive farming methods often use less land but create more damage in the place that is being used. For instance, it can include heavy machinery, fossil fuels and worst of all, animals being kept in terrible conditions. Unfortunately, farmers often have no other option but to go down this road. They have to do everything they can to try and make ends meet.

Unnatural Farming Methods

Finally, more farms than ever are using unnatural farming methods such as growing veg by using chemicals. Many people argue that we don’t fully understand the impact that using these chemicals could have on the environment or indeed our health. But again, it’s due to the pressures farmers are under that these measures must be taken. In this case, it’s not their bank account that’s being stretched but the human population. We need bigger food grown to provide for a world population two billion over what the environment can cope with.

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