Competitive Agricultural Systems: Conventional Agriculture Versus Ecological Agriculture

Developing production systems that integrate the benefits of the conventional agricultural system and the benefits of the organic farming system are needed to create a more sustainable future for agriculture. The organic farming system is perceived as a system that provides solutions to the problems faced by the agricultural sector: increasing sustainability, biodiversity, improving soil and air quality, etc. Romania has responded to these benefits by encouraging farmers to adopt environmentally friendly farming practices, financial incentives (in addition to direct payment schemes, payments under Measure 11 – Organic Farming). The paper presents some estimates of the evolution of incomes, costs and profitability of agricultural products for the period 2015–2018 under conventional and organic farming conditions. From the results it is deduced that farmers who have gone into organic farming can earn incomes equal to their conventional or even higher. The studies made in this paper contribute to a deeper knowledge of the two systems of agriculture in general and to the economic knowledge of conventional farming versus the economy of organic farming in particular. Although in recent years the interest in organic farming has increased, it can be noticed that there is a small amount of accessible information on yields, costs and profit.