Sustaining the earth.

Crimson and clover, over and over...That's a sign of spring at pecan orchards across the South and Southwestern United States. Once, the season meant a continuous procession of tractors pulling insecticide sprayers, contraptions with nozzles and fans spewing clouds of insect nerve gas over the trees and the aphids plaguing them. Now, bed after bed of untrampled crimson clover, entangled by vines of blue-flowered hairy vetch, adorn the grounds beneath the stately, spreading trees.

These innocuous-looking orchard flowers lead the assault on the pecan's aphid enemies by enticing an unlikely army of lady beetles, lacewings and assassin bugs, thereby dramatically decreasing the need for spraying. As a side benefit, the flowers pump the soil full of nitrogen, eliminating the need for artificial fertilizers. What's so special about this new approach to raising this most important component of Thanksgiving pies? Government funding, for one thing.

Pushed by the public outcry over pesticide poisoning and a dwindling number of available chemicals, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has steadily increased the amount of its budget devoted to alternative agriculture over the last nine years to a record $7 million. By actively encouraging farmers to investigate complex, nonchemical solutions to common problems and publicizing the results, it is seeding some notable change. This growing trend is called sustainable agriculture. Burdened by a long definition, "sustainable agriculture" encompasses alternative farming practices aimed at minimizing, or at least reducing, environmental degradation.

Sustainable agriculture, a close relative of organic farming, represents more of a concept than a standard. As Hal Ricker, director of USDA's National Organic Program, puts it, 'Organic is at one end of the spectrum and conventional is at the other end--sustainable is somewhere in the middle." Sustainable agriculture operates on a continuum that factors in things like maximizing the economic viability of the family farmer.

Sustainable methods may demand more thought and labor, which can mean raising a number of different kinds of crops, often together with animals. What's different about sustainable agriculture is that each case is unique," explains Harry W Wells, coordinator for Agriculture in Concert with the Environment, a joint USDA-EPA project. "Each crop, farm, region and year is unique. It takes a lot more hands-on management, a much-greater knowledge of the possibilities and alternatives. It isn't as though there's a magic bullet."

Even without pat formulas supposedly guaranteeing successful harvests, sustainability has managed to attract the attention of some influential names. Clothes maker Patagonia, Gallo and Fetzer Vineyards, General Mills, Smuckers, Welches and Roman Meal have largely thrown off their chemical dependency; while Libby's, DelMonte, Kellogg's, Dole and Green Giant claim more qualified support for sustainability. At minimum, these companies are patronizing growers using integrated pest management (IPM) schemes like the ones now used to control pecan aphids. IPM, in use for 25 years, advocates "ecosystem-based" approaches that don't necessarily improve soil fertility, and some critics feel that the term has been co-opted by industry as a new means of selling pesticides (albeit less of them).

Organics Growing Appeal

Sustainability is still very new, but the growing appeal of organic food is a good guide to its potential, With an average growth of over 20 percent for the past five years, organic sales reached an estimated $1.5 billion last year. What's historically held back organic goods--and, by extension, food grown using labor-intensive sustainable practices--is price. A recent survey by the Washington, DC-based Public Voice indicated that 80 percent of Americans would pay "somewhat more" for food produced with fewer chemicals. Another recent survey by Colorado State University found that people won't pay more than 25 percent more. "People's philosophical commitment to organic is larger than their financial commitment," points out Katherine DiMattio, executive director of the Massachusetts-based Organic Foods Production Association of North America(OFPANA).

Luckily, that price premium is being brought down, at least in some areas. If you live in the Washington, DC, Philadelphia or Chicago areas, check out a Fresh Fields store. "We're a real supermarket with good prices. People who shop at health food stores think they've died and gone to heaven when they walk into one of our stores," says Kathy Ordan, director of marketing for the new chain that's opened up 12 stores in the past few years. Named Money magazine's "Store of the Year" in 1993, the store sells "as much organic food as possible." Its guiding principles prohibit it from offering animal foods raised with hormones or antibiotics, or foods containing hydrogenated or tropical oils, or refined sugars. And, although 40 to 70 percent of the food on sale is grown organically, "A Safeway customer could walk through a Fresh Fields store and feel comfortable," says Ken Mergentime of Natural Food Merchandiser magazine.

Another notable expanding alternative food chain is Whole Foods. The largest retailer of natural foods in the country, the chain now has 33 member stores (including Mrs. Gooch's, Bread Circus and Wellsprings Groceries) across the country. Whole Foods is "committed to organic and tries to sell the largest number of organics possible," says one company spokesperson. Among the chain's principles are to "both feature and develop native produce from local areas, especially when it's organically grown," says President Peter Roy. Indeed, this kind of bioregional purchasing and selling is also an important tenet of sustainable agriculture.

Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont is promoting a bill that would add a mandatory percentage of organic produce to the national school lunch program. And hundreds of chefs, many from the nation's most exclusive restaurants, recently signed a charter pledging to actively promote "locally grown, seasonally fresh and whole or minimally processed ingredients," grown using "environmentally sustainable farming."

As frequent food consumers--and all of us are--this is one area where individuals can make a substantial difference. "The ultimate decision about whether food methods will continue to change lies with the consumer," stresses NFM's Mergentime. Ninety-two percent of Americans report feeling it is "very important" for farmers to rely less on chemicals and more on natural alternatives. If you're one of them, you might want to begin finding out, then selectively picking and choosing where your next meal will come from.

KELLYN BETTS is a Portland-based freelance writer who once spent a summer as an organic gardener in Vermont.