[bradleybuda]

That's the nice thing about free trade and free markets - everyone is running a decentralized version of that experiment and incrementally updating the data live. If you make both paths available (organic vs fertilizer) and let the farmers whose livelihoods are on the line choose, then they are very likely to make the best choice.

[lottin]

The best choice for farmers isn't necessarily the best choice for society as a whole.

[ravel-bar-foo]

If society values agricultural output or having income in rural areas it's a lot better to have farmers making the choices themselves than to chose whatever non-farmer/urban/plutocrat politicians would mandate.

[modo_mario]

What about the nitrogen issue in places like Belgium or the Netherlands?

[midasuni]

Not when the externalities are hidden, especially when hidden from both producer and consumer