“Sustainable approaches are those that are the least toxic and least energy intensive, and yet maintain productivity and profitability.”

“Diversified farms are usually more economically and ecologically resilient.”

“A common philosophy among sustainable agriculture practitioners is that a “healthy” soil is a key component of sustainability that is, a healthy soil will produce healthy crop plants that have optimum vigor and are less susceptible to pests.”

“Sustainable agriculture presents an opportunity to rethink the importance of family farms and rural communities.”

“Consumers can play a critical role in creating a sustainable food system. Through their purchases, they send strong messages to producers, retailers and others in the system about what they think is important. Food cost and nutritional quality have always influenced consumer choices. The challenge now is to find strategies that broaden consumer perspectives, so that environmental quality, resource use, and social equity issues are also considered in shopping decisions.”