The depletion of nutrient dense soil and produce

Would you believe it if we told you a vegetable eaten decades ago was healthier than the vegetables you consume today? It’s true. A 2011 study from the University of Texas, USA, found the amount of important nutrients such as calcium, protein, phosphorous, Vitamin C and iron have significantly reduced in our foodstuffs over recent decades.

Author of ‘Grass, Soil, Hope’, Courtney White, cited an Australian study that found apples lost 80 per cent of their vitamin C between 1948 and 1991. And what was the reason? Soil depletion. This depletion can be attributed to modern agricultural methods stripping the soil of essential vitamins and minerals faster than it can be replaced. Greater rates of artificial fertilisers, chemical pesticides, high yield crop production and irrigation has resulted in the removal of nutrients and organic matter from the soil’s natural cycling system.

To be fair, scientists have also blamed new breeds of fast-growing plants and high-yield farming practices, among other reasons, for the reducing amounts of nutrients in our fresh food, but soil depletion is one of the most important considerations. Farmers previously replenished the nutrient levels of fields with compost, crop rotation and soil rest intervals. Now, this process is bypassed in favour of chemical-based fertilisers that compromise naturally occurring minerals in the soil. 

Soil is, in effect, a living system, consisting of structure, minerals and a balance of living organisms and decomposing organic matter. Depending on conditions, soil can be healthy, unhealthy or even dead. Plants and vegetables grown in unhealthy or depleted soils don’t have enough minerals to produce nutrient-dense produce to keep humans and animals healthy. To put it simply, without mineral enriched soil, produce is unable to get what it needs to grow nutritious food. The key to healthier plants and produce is healthier soil. This means foregoing pesticides and fertilisers that contain synthetic chemicals and using organic products and growing methods beneficial to the soil, produce, animals and ourselves. 

Often described as the ‘missing link’ in plant and soil nutrition, fulvic acid is a powerful substance that stimulates plant metabolism, increases enzyme activity and improves nutrient efficiency. Just one fulvic molecule is capable of carrying over 60 mineral and trace elements to maximise nutritional potential. As a humic substance, fulvic acid is a significant building block of living matter. A component of soil, fulvic acid releases millions of highly beneficial microbes, making it one of the most chemically active compounds in soil. A rich assortment of hormones, fatty acids, ketones, vitamins and minerals and generally present in healthy soils, fulvic acid is then absorbed by plants and produce.  

As one of the most fundamental ingredients in creating healthy well-balanced soil for produce to thrive in, fulvic acid is available in granular, liquid and powder form and can be mixed with most other products. You’ll find several fulvic acid products in our shop, so take a look around.