A Comparison of Financial Returns During Early Transition from Conventional to Organic Vegetable Production

Relative profitability was compared for five vegetables (sweet corn, green bean, cabbage, tomato, Spanish onion) during the second and third years of transition from conventional to organic production practice. Input and output data developed in field experiments in 1991 and 1992 revealed average organic yields were significantly lower than those from conventional production systerns. Decreases ranged from 8 percent for green bean to 45 percent for tomato. Input costs were generally higher for organically grown crops than for those produced conventionally. As a result, profits to organic production were significantly lower than conventional at the same output price level. While all five conventionally produced vegetables showed positive profits per hectare ranging from $544 for green beans to $2,063 for cabbages, net returns from organic horticulture were negative for all five crops. The losses ranged from $732 for cabbages to $2,628 for tomatoes.