Do crop deaths matter?

(image description)- a brown mouse crawls through a field and stumbles upon a buried flax bud that emits a foul smell, “telling” the mouse that this is not welcome territory. to which the mouse replies, “thank you for asking nicely” — implying they appreciate the natural deterrent rather than a toxic trap.

Can we avoid crop deaths?

“What about crop deaths in plant-cultivation’s? Vegan food kills animals too!” is a common rhetoric in conversation during outreach and advocacy. It is mostly asked in genuine curiosity but most often than not, comes across as an excuse against ‪eating plant-based.‬

Vegan advocates are taught that this is an inevitable circumstance and that we must do the least harm.

While using crop deaths as an excuse to not consider a more cruelty-free life choice is…well, inexcusable… advocates for an anti speciesist world must also consider the largely unseen victims of our food system.

Crop deaths are a reality for many small animals that fall victim to the human hands holding large mono-culture plantations that use chemical pesticides to increase their harvest.

But is this an inevitable reality?

‪Prior to European colonization and the introduction of capitalist agriculture in Sri Lanka, native communities used natural deterrents to protect their crops. Known in Sinhala as ‘kem krama’, these were all organic and mostly non-toxic.‬

Interesting examples include applying neem oil [kohomba thel] on a winnowing basket [kulla] and lightly brushing it against the paddy to deter insects. Burying flax buds or sprouts [hana goba] in the field gave out an unpleasant aroma to visiting rodents, sending them back home, unharmed.

While it will take considerable effort to dismantle the capitalist food system to produce organic fruit and veg at an accessible price, we must understand that it is not impossible.

We just haven’t got there yet.