Photo credit: Forsaken Fotos

For almost four decades, Rodale Institute has been running side-by-side trials to compare conventional and organic cropping systems. The most recent results from this study, published in Organic Agriculture, have found that the organic systems produce crop yields equal to the conventional yields. Organic plots also improved soil health, energy efficiency and released fewer greenhouse gasses than the conventional plots.  The combination of increased yield and reduced need for inputs also meant that the organic plots were more profitable than the conventional plots.