Study suggests organic farming needs direction to be sustainable

[cprise]

6. Organic traditionally aims to conserve healthy soil

Hence why one of the original progenitors of organic certification is the Soil Association:

The principle of ecology

Organic Agriculture should be based on living ecological systems and cycles, work with them, emulate them and help sustain them.

This principle roots organic agriculture within living ecological systems. It states that production is to be based on ecological processes, and recycling. Nourishment and well-being are achieved through the ecology of the specific production environment. For example, in the case of crops this is the living soil; for animals it is the farm ecosystem; for fish and marine organisms, the aquatic environment.

As the organic philosophy got applied to more and more crops and environments, it essentially merged with ecological principles. Sustainable soil use led eventually to sustainable aquaculture, textiles, etc. But it has not yet caught up with the greenhouse gas issue, and its worth noting the study of how agricultural processes give off greenhouse gases (and, conversely, how global warming is affecting soils) is still a fast-moving one.

So, yes, organic is about sustainability. But its old enough to have some traces of siloing between what were thought to be separate disciplines. I am all for expanding the focus beyond the effects on the soil and water, to make agriculture accountable to impacts on the entire biosphere. That's why I shop to limit my carbon footprint but also buy organic when I can.