Chapter 02 · Nature, land & waterCoffee, Cocoa & Agricultural Commodities
Conservation Agriculture
Definition
Conservation Agriculture is a farming approach defined by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization around three linked principles: minimum mechanical soil disturbance (no-till or reduced tillage), permanent soil organic cover (at least 30 per cent, using crop residues or cover crops), and diversification of species through rotations or associations of at least three crops. It aims to improve soil health, water retention and resilience while sustaining yields.
References
three principles and definition
history and principle thresholds
Overview
What it means
A codified alternative to conventional plough-based agriculture that treats soil structure and biology as assets to be protected.
How it is used
FAO promotes the system globally; its origins are often traced to responses to the 1930s Dust Bowl in North America. It is now applied across cereals and commodity systems and cited in climate-adaptation and soil-carbon programmes.
Why it matters
As one of the few agricultural approaches with a formal institutional definition, it anchors debates about soil health, erosion, farm resilience and low-carbon farming practices.