Why are we doing this?
We want to make farming systems more sustainable in order to stop the loss of soil fertility. We want to promote a more sustainable use of the world's remaining resources.
The following two observations were the main motivation for setting up Soil & More International:
Observation 1: In many developing countries soils are becoming more and more depleted due to intensive use of chemical fertilizers and non sustainable farming practices. This results in decreasing yields. The farmers try to compensate for their loss by using even more intensive farming methods. In arid climates, poor soil fertility is a growing concern to all farmers. This is a negative spiral which, at the end, is likely to cause negative results and bankruptcy for thousands of farmers and related companies within the coming 5 to 10 years.
Observation 2: Whilst farmers struggle with loss of soil fertility and decreasing yields, valuable biomass is often dumped and left to rot. In some countries, compost is imported from abroad whilst the locally available biomass is not re-integrated into the eco-system.
Turning two threats into an opportunity: Keeping these two observations in mind, Soil & More's founders decided to use unwanted biomass for the production of high quality compost. Our compost helps to increase the water holding capacity of soils, suppress diseases, and improve the soil structure. Furthermore, it constitutes a substitute for synthetic fertilizers. Last but not least, our composting projects stimulate the local economy, provide people with year round employment, (mostly) qualify as emission reduction projects and secure the existence of farms.
On a broader note, we think that, in a world where natural resources are steadily shrinking, a more efficient use of the remaining resources is crucial. We believe that sustainable practices and concepts – on a business, as well as a farming level – can help to tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges, such as water and food scarcity, climate change, the loss of fertile soil, and migration from rural areas to the cities.
Currently, about, 2 million hectares of rain fed and irrigated agricultural lands are lost to production every year, as stated on the World Bank’s internet site. According to the FAO, the availability of arable land per person decreased from 4307m2 in 1961 to 2137m2 in 2007. Causes are a steadily growing world population, but also the loss of fertile soils and arable land through non sustainable farming practices. Water and food scarcity cause the death of about 24.000 people every day. In times of shrinking resources and a steadily growing population, fertile soils and sustainable farming practices are crucial to ensure food security. The agricultural sector contributes significantly to climate change and consumes around two thirds of the worldwide available fresh water.
However, it also has the potential to mitigate climate change and reduce the use of water. We believe that one important component of a sustainable farming system is compost, as it leads to carbon sequestration and increased water holding capacity of soils. Compost constitutes a substitute for synthetic fertilizers and improves the soils structure. It also helps to strengthen the natural balance of our soils which makes them more adaptable to unstable and severe environmental conditions and resource scarcity.