Sustainable crops may be the future for some rainforest areas.! This means growing crops in greater harmony with the environment, reducing impacts on the soil and removing the need to keep moving on every few years as the soil becomes infertile.! And there are benefits too, as farmers who choose to farm sustainably can gain certification which allows them to charge higher prices for their crops.

Sustainable agriculture aims to cause less water pollution by reducing the use of pesticides and fertilisers.! Soil erosion is reduced by planting on  natural contours in the ground and keeping a covering of trees over the ground.! Important wildlife habitats are protected, with buffer zones on river banks and wetlands.! Patches of forest are also preserved - rather like ?setaside? land on European farms. !

By-products of agriculture like banana stems, coffee pulp and orange peels are used as natural fertiliser for the soil, rather than being thrown away.! Waste like glass, plastic and metal are recycled where possible.! Waste of water is minimised.! Farmers plan their activities better and take care to ensure that their farms improve over time.

Better farms mean better forests-

Although it takes more effort to farm sustainably, the benefits are clear.! Certification from an organisation like the Rainforest Alliance enables sustainable farmers to get better prices when their crops go to market and their higher incomes make it easier for them to access credit to invest in improving their farms further.! Many sustainable farmers also co-operate with conservationists to try to ensure that species and habitats are protected.! Sustainable agriculture has so many positives that it would seem to be an excellent model for the future. !

Currently an international organisation, the International Agriculture Network, is active in 20 rainforested countries in South and Central America, Africa and South East Asia.! It has almost 50,000 certified farms in its network, which between them cover almost 574,000 hectares. The main obstacle to having more sustainable farms in the forests seems to be in training and persuading the farmers to adopt sustainable practices - and the money it costs to make the training and persuasion possible.