Soper Farms Triples Net Income Switching From GMO Crops to Organic

http://www.nationofchange.org/2015/11/22/soper-farms-triples-net-income-switching-from-gmo-crops-to-organic/

The Soper family voted to transition the farms, which comprise about 800 acres, to organic, starting in 2010.

“When we decided to go into organics it was unanimous,” Harn says.

After unsuccessful attempts to grow organic vegetables and raise grass-fed beef on a large scale, the Sopers decided to focus on row crops, such as corn, which they had grown successfully in the past. They began the three-year transition to organic by growing oats, alfalfa, and clover in the first two years, followed by corn in the third.
“We focused on soil restoration,” Harn says.

Soper Farms leased its land to organic farm operators as part of a crop share arrangement where the Sopers and farmers shared revenue generated from the crops.
Net income from the first two years of the transition, 2010 and 2011, averaged $134 per acre, compared to $180 per acre from GMO corn and soybeans in 2008 and 2009. In 2012, the final year of the transition and first year of organic certification, net income from the organic corn crop soared to nearly $900 per acre. Continuing the rotation in 2013, the Sopers planted organic oats and alfalfa, and these produced $254 per acre.

Comparing the two years of GMO corn and soybeans with the first two years of organic certification, Soper Farms increased their net income from $180 per acre with GMOs to $578 with organics.