COMPARATIVE PROFITABILITY OF CONVENTIONAL AND BIOLOGICAL-SYSTEMS OF MILK-PRODUCTION IN QUEBEC

From the AGRITEL data base, 336 conventional and 16 organic farms spec ialized in dairy are selected. Using different concepts of production, seven groups are formed (one of which is organic). The groups of conv entional farms correspond to farms using particularly high and low lev els of inputs as well as farms with intensive and extensive production for the herd or for the farm as a whole. Organic farms are found to h ave economic and financial performance at least as good as the highest -yielding conventional farms (intensive). However, even though the con cepts of production may be similar between the organic and extensive o r low input groups, differences in yields and profitability are often significant. Organic farms have more of a balance between milk and cro p production and thus the dominance of dairy production on the farm is not as significant. Labor costs are found to be higher for organic fa rms than for most conventional farm groups. This study indicates that it may be possible to improve the profitability of extensive and low i nput farms, given that they have production concepts similar to those of organic farms.