Bhutan, a small mountain nation in the Himalayas, is planning to go 100 percent organic by 2020. If they succeed, they’ll be the first country in the world to achieve the feat.
Bhutan, a small mountain nation in the Himalayas, is planning to go 100 percent organic by 2020. If they succeed, they’ll be the first country in the world to achieve the feat.
A small mountain nation located in the Himalayas (between China and India), Bhutan is home to around 700,000 people—most of them farmers. Back in 2011, the country announced their ambitious goal to convert all farmland within the country to an organic agricultural system. If Bhutan succeeds, it will become the first nation in the world to go 100 percent organic.
Where does a country start in achieving such a feat? Perhaps it begins with a change in perspective. Bhutan is already unique in one key respect: It’s the only country in the world that does not use gross domestic product (GDP) as a measure of progress. Instead, the nation relies on a measurement called “gross domestic happiness”—which quantifies (and prioritizes) the health and happiness of the country.
Natasha Geiling at ThinkProgress interviewed Appachanda Thimmaiah, the agricultural advisor who worked with the Bhutanese government beginning in 2008 to launch the transition process, about how the country’s cultural philosophy influences its agricultural philosophy:
“When we say happiness, it’s not just happiness of humans. It’s the happiness of the soil, happiness of the animals, happiness of all sentient beings. Organic farming was very much part of the gross national happiness. You cannot think about applying chemical fertilizers and pesticides and say that your country is happy.”
But Bhutan’s reasons for embracing organic agriculture go beyond ideology. When educating farmers about the transition, the term “organic agriculture” wasn’t even used. “I used a term called low-cost agriculture,” Thimmaiah said. “The most important thing in organic farming is to see that all the inputs that are required are produced in the farm itself by the farmers by utilizing the locally available resources.”
By designing an agricultural system that is complementary to local resources and waste products—and doesn’t necessitate shipping expensive chemical fertilizer throughout the country—Thimmaiah was confident that organic agriculture would end up being more cost-effective for farmers.
What would it take for a country like the United States to make a similar transition? Kristine Nichols, chief scientist at the Rodale Institute, says the key is supporting farmers, which would require “a massive overhaul of our priorities” on almost every level. “From a government standpoint as well as a private industry standpoint, there needs to be support for these transitioning farmers,” Nichols says.
That's the main engine behind Bhutan's drive for change: Educating farmers. The government has invested resources in teaching farmers how to produce their own pollinated heirloom seeds, how to reuse animal waste for manure, the best cover crops and crop rotation systems to maintain peak soil health, and other essential techniques.
There are still hurdles to overcome, as Bhutan becomes increasingly urban and continues to rely heavily on imported food. But with farmers and political will working in harmony, the country's push for a more sustainable future has all the elements it needs to succeed.
What would need to change about our national attitude toward food in order for the U.S. to commit to organic agriculture?
