Conventional Farming Systems Research Articles

Current Progress and Future Prospects of Agriculture Technology: Gateway to Sustainable Agriculture

The agricultural industry is getting more data-centric and requires precise, more advanced data and technologies than before, despite being familiar with agricultural processes. The agriculture industry is being advanced by various information and advanced communication technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT). The rapid emergence of these advanced technologies has restructured almost all other industries, as well as advanced agriculture, which has shifted the industry from a statistical approach to a quantitative one. This radical change has shaken existing farming techniques and produced the latest prospects in a series of challenges. This comprehensive review article enlightens the potential of the IoT in the advancement of agriculture and the challenges faced when combining these advanced technologies with conventional agricultural systems. A brief analysis of these advanced technologies with sensors is presented in advanced agricultural applications. Numerous sensors that can be implemented for specific agricultural practices require best management practices (e.g., land preparation, irrigation systems, insect, and disease management). This review includes the integration of all suitable techniques, from sowing to harvesting, packaging, transportation, and advanced technologies available for farmers throughout the cropping system. Besides, this review article highlights the utilization of other tools such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for crop monitoring and other beneficiary measures, such as optimizing crop yields. In addition, advanced programs based on the IoT are also discussed. Finally, based on our comprehensive review, we identified advanced prospects regarding the IoT, which are essential tools for sustainable agriculture.

Comparative Economics of Conventional, Organic, and Alternative Agricultural Production Systems

Agricultural production systems are a composite of philosophy, adoptability, and careful analysis of risks and rewards. The two dominant typologies include conventional and organics, while biotechnology (GM) and Integrated Pest Management (IPM) represent situational modifiers. We conducted a systematic review to weigh the economic merits—as well as intangibles through an economic lens—of each standalone system and system plus modifier, where applicable. Overall, 17,485 articles were found between ScienceDirect and Google Scholar, with 213 initially screened based on putative relevance. Of those, 82 were selected for an in-depth analysis, with 63 ultimately used. Economically, organic generally outperformed conventional systems. This is largely due to their lower production costs and higher market price. However, organic farms face lower yields, especially in the fruit, vegetable, and animal husbandry sectors. With that said, organic farming can provide significant local environmental benefits. Integrated pest management (IPM) is a potentiator of either core system. As a risk reduction and decision-making framework, it is labor intensive. However, this can be offset by input reductions without yield penalty compared to a conventional baseline. Biotechnology is a rapidly emerging production system, notably in developing countries. The use of GM crops results in lower production cost and higher yields. As a conventional modifier, its major advantage is scale-neutrality. Thus, smaller and lower income farmers may achieve higher gross margin. The main source of environmental benefits is reduced pesticide use, which implies a decreased need for fuel and labor. Barring external influences such as subsidies and participation in prescriptive labeling programs, farmers should focus on an a la carte approach (as opposed to discrete system adoption) to optimize their respective enterprises.

Robustness of rhizosphere microbial communities of L. sativa originated from soils of different legacy after inoculation with Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria

Organic and conventional agricultural systems present differences in soil microbial biomass, activity and community composition. However, data concerning the network of correlations among the microbial members in agricultural soils are too limited. In this paper, we examined structural characteristics of the network of these correlations developed in two soils of different legacy (an organic maize (O) and a conventional barley cultivation (C)) cultivated with lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) plants in a pot experiment. Further, in each soil, inoculation with Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR) took place once: Bacillus subtilis (Ba; gram-positive), Pseudomonas fluorescens (Ps; gram-negative), both inoculants (Ps + Ba) and a control without inoculants. We considered inoculation as perturbations for the rhizosphere soil microbes and we estimated the robustness of the soil microbial networks denoting their ability to retain connectivity. Networks from all treatments exhibited positive values of modularity, small-worldness index (SW) >1 and clustering coefficient > 0.4, indicating modular structure, small world properties and the predominance of direct connections. The network in C control exhibited higher values of density and centrality and lower values of fragmentation and SW compared to O control. In organic system, the highest fragmentation (0.55 and 0.62) and SW values (4.98 and 5.48) were in control and co-inoculated soils respectively while in conventional system the highest values were in soils with Ba or Ps inoculants; fragmentation 0.52 (Ba) and 0.48 (Ps), SW 3.54 (Ba) and 4.14 (Ps). The robustness of the soil microbial communities depended on soil legacy (prior management system) as well as whether each inoculant applied individually or jointly, while the type of inoculant was insignificant.

Europe's Farm to Fork Strategy and Its Commitment to Biotechnology and Organic Farming: Conflicting or Complementary Goals?

The European Commission's Farm to Fork (F2F) strategy, under the European Green Deal, acknowledges that innovative techniques, including biotechnology, may play a role in increasing sustainability. At the same time, organic farming will be promoted, and at least 25% of the EU's agricultural land shall be under organic farming by 2030. How can both biotechnology and organic farming be developed and promoted simultaneously to contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)? We illustrate that achieving the SDGs benefits from the inclusion of recent innovations in biotechnology in organic farming. This requires a change in the law. Otherwise, the planned increase of organic production in the F2F strategy may result in less sustainable, not more sustainable, food systems.

Assessment of Interactions between Yield Components of Common Vetch Cultivars in Both Conventional and Low-Input Cultivation Systems

The primary purpose of this study was to explore yield stability of common vetch varieties based on the stability index, with a specific aim of exploring common vetch variety behavior regarding the yield of legumes under both conventional and low-input cultivation systems. Six varieties of common vetch (Vicia sativa L.), namely, cv. Filippos, cv. Omiros, cv. Alexandros, cv. Tempi, cv. Zefyros and cv. Pigasos, were used. The cultivation was conducted using a strip-plot design with the six varieties randomized within each plot in two farming systems (conventional and low-input). Filippos was the best variety in conventional farming for seed yield, followed by Omiros. Omiros was the best variety in the low-input farming system for seed yield. Comparisons between conventional and low-input farming systems generally did not display any effect on stability estimations, but revealed the varieties that exhibit stable performance even in low-input farming systems. Stability analysis via the AMMI1 and GxE biplot analysis for one main factor showed two groups of varieties for seed yield with similar behavior. Genotype and environment distribution were used to group varieties that showed better performance in certain environments for seed yield but with differences in comparison to other traits. Correlations between traits showed the positive relation of seed yield to the number of pods per plant, the number of seeds per pod, the pod length, the mean weight of pods and, especially, the hay weight (r = 0.771), a useful finding for indirect selection for breeders. The results provide valuable data regarding the genetic material, its adaptability and stability in varied environments and suitability for low-input cultivation systems.

Long-term impacts of organic and conventional farming on the soil microbiome in boreal arable soil

Long-term effects of organic and conventional farming systems in parallel on the microbiota of boreal arable soil from forage and cereal crop fields were investigated. Microbial activity was measured as basal respiration and microbial biomass C and N were determined by fumigation extraction. Microbial abundance was determined by gene copy numbers from bacterial and archaeal specific 16S rRNA genes and the fungal ITS2 region with quantitative PCR. Microbial community composition for soil bacteria and fungi, including arbuscular mycorrhiza, were conducted by amplicon sequencing with richness assessed from OTU reads. We detected changes in both bacterial and fungal community composition between the farming systems. Microbial activity and biomass C and N were higher in the organic system for cereal crop rotation compared to the respective conventional system. In the autumn, organic systems had higher microbial richness. As fungi were more abundant in the autumn, they may be responsible for both higher microbial activity and C sequestration in their biomass after harvesting, especially in the organic system for cereal crop rotation. Also, crop type and cow manure explained changes in fungal community composition. The typical bacterial community of the organic system for cereal crop rotation included many soil and plant health promoting bacterial groups. Fungi benefiting from organic farming practices, other than manure, may include endophytic taxa with a variety of functions as well as pathogenic and mycotoxin producing species. Overall, the results suggest that farming practices typical of organic farming, such as use of green manure and continuous plant cover have induced changes in the soil microbiome.

Influence of Tillage and Crop Rotations in Organic and Conventional Farming Systems on Soil Organic Matter, Bulk Density and Enzymatic Activities in a Short-Term Field Experiment

Intensive agricultural practices are leading to loss of soil fertility and overexploitation of natural resources which cause nutrients imbalance and further impair ecosystem services. Organic farming (OF), also coupled with minimum tillage and crop rotations, represents one of the strategies to limit this process and maintain soil functions. In a two-year field trial, organic farming practices, including a set of fertilizations combined with crop rotations and association with nitrogen fixing cover crops, were compared. The aim of this research was to assess in the short-term the effects on soil organic carbon, aggregate stability, and soil enzymes activities of using a combination of promising management practices in the delta region of the Po river. Results did not show improvements in organic carbon content and soil aggregate stability. Conversely, enzymatic activities were always significantly higher in OF treatments than the conventional one. Crop rotation and associated legumes were effective in enhancing β-glucosidase and P fixation through phosphatases activities. The present work suggests that an effective choice of crop species coupled with legumes can enhance biological activity re-starting main mechanisms of microbial development even without a contemporary increase of organic matter.

The Performance of Oat-Vetch Mixtures in Organic and Conventional Farming Systems

The research aimed to compare the yields and yield components of mixtures of oats with common vetch grown for seeds in organic and conventional farming systems. Moreover, the selection of oat cultivars for the mixture and its performance in a crop rotation experiment in different growing years was analyzed. Additionally, the leaf area index (LAI) and the relative content of chlorophyll (SPAD) of the mixtures were assessed. The field experiment with four-field crop rotation in organic or conventional farming systems was carried out in 2012–2014 in southern Poland. Common vetch (Vicia sativa L., cv. ‘Hanka’) was mixed with one of two oat (Avena sativa L.) cultivars, ‘Celer’ or ‘Grajcar.’ The effects of all of the factors on the mixtures’ canopy indices and yield were found. The canonical analysis revealed that the weather course, especially drought, had the largest effect on the oat-vetch mixtures’ performance. Moreover, the mixtures developed the highest LAI (5.28 m2∙m−2) and seed yield (4.57 t ha−1) in the conventional farming system. On the contrary, the share of vetch seeds in the mixtures was 24% higher in the organic system than in the conventional one. The selection of cv. ‘Grajcar’ oats for the mixture with vetch increased the share of vetch seeds in the yield by 16.5%. In summary, a balanced share of oat-vetch mixture components depends on the proper selection of the oat cultivar, especially for organic farming systems.

Organic vegetable farming system enhancing soil carbon sequestration in Bali, Indonesia

Climate change as an implication of global warming due to the influence of increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere has become an important issue in recent decades. Organic farming plays an important role in mitigating climate change by reducing atmospheric greenhouse gas emissions through increased soil carbon sequestration. This study was designed to compare soil carbon sequestration levels between conventional and organic vegetable farming fields in Bali, Indonesia. Soil samples were taken from organic fields and conventional fields in pairs. Variables of soil organic carbon, soil labile carbon, and soil bulk density are measured. Vegetable yields were estimated by fresh weights from a quadrant of 45 plants (1.12 m2) in each farming system, which is then converted to the fresh weight per hectare. The results from soil analysis indicate that organic farming leads to soil with significantly higher soil carbon storage capacity than conventional farming. The labile C fraction shows a more significant increase compared to total C. Organic farming can increase by 1.13 tons C per hectare per year compared with the conventional farming system. The use of manure compost as an alternative in vegetable fields of Bali has resulted in increased soil organic carbon storage and gross benefits for farming. Although more research is needed on the actual emissions of CO2 gas from organic and conventional farming, this research can be used as an early indication that organic vegetable farming system can increase the mitigation of global warming, and build sustainable agriculture in Bali, Indonesia.

Farmers’ Decision to Adopt Organic Rice Farming in Pringkasap Village

Organic farming is not the only potential solutions to overcome the problems of conventional farming systems by offering positive impacts on health and environment but also to fulfill the growing demand for healthier food. However, the growing demand for organic food was not responded simultaneously by an increase in the supply of organic food. This means that there is opportunity to increase participation of farmers to adopt organic rice farming systems. This study aims to analyze the adoption rate and factors affecting farmer adoption of organic rice farming system. This study used primary data of 32 organic and conventional farmers in Pringkasap Village Subang Regency. The respondents were chosen using census method for organic farmers and purposive sampling for conventional farmers.The data was analyzed used descriptive statistics and logistic regression. The results showed that the number of farmers adopted organic rice only 6.25% amongst the 265 rice farmers in Pringkasap Village. The results also showed that education, farmed land, farmer’s perception of the relative advantage of organic farming and number of family members are factors that significantly affect the adoption of organic rice farming in Pringkasap Village.

Flowering fields, organic farming and edge habitats promote diversity of plants and arthropods on arable land

Abstract Increased farming intensity led to massive declines across multiple farmland taxa. In Europe, measures introduced to counteract these losses include those considered agronomically productive, such as organic farming, as well as those that support no direct production of crops, such as non‐crop flowering fields in conventional farming systems. We studied biodiversity effects of non‐productive flowering fields managed under conventional farming compared to both an organically managed cereal mono‐crop (organic winter spelt fields) and a flowering mixed‐crop (organic lentil mixed‐crop fields) as well as conventionally managed winter wheat fields, which served as control crop. These four crop‐use types were studied on six sites over 3 years (17 sites in total) to assess their impact on the activity density (cover for plants), species richness and community composition of wild plants, carabids, spiders, butterflies and wild bees. Species richness of wild plants was highest under organic farming and at field edges when compared to the interior. In the case of carabids and spiders, species richness was highest at the field edges, but there was no difference between the four crop‐use types. In contrast, activity density and species richness of butterflies and wild bees responded only to flowering crop‐use types, showing no edge effects. Arable land cover in 500 m buffer area also affected community composition of all taxa, with the exception of spiders, but had only minor effects on activity densities and species richness. Synthesis and applications. Our findings underline that there is no single best measure to promote biodiversity on arable land. Instead a mosaic of non‐productive and productive measures such as conventional flowering fields, organic crops and field edge habitats might be more appropriate to support the regional species pool in arable‐dominated landscapes. To support a range of complementary biodiversity‐promoting farming practices, agricultural policy should foster the coordination and collaboration between multiple farmers within the same region by covering additional costs for coordination and prioritizing collaborative schemes.

Dynamics of Conservation Agriculture: a societal perspective

In an era of unstable ecology and fragile environment, a sustainable cultivation approach is gaining gradual importance in place of conventional input-intensive agricultural production systems along with non-judicious use of agrochemicals and irrigated water. Many international development projects have started to promote Conservation Agriculture globally, in this perspective. Conservation Agriculture (CA) is mainly comprised of three interlinked principles, viz. soil disturbance to the null or minimal, permanent cover on soil using mulch or crop residues, and crop diversification. Day by day CA is getting more and more attention of farming community throughout the world. In 2015–2016 season conservation agriculture was adopted on about 180 MHA of cropland, about 12.5% of the total global cropland, i.e. 69% more than 2008–2009 in the world. The adoption behaviour of farmers has been reviewed in this literature. Key influencers on smallholdings, gender dimension and knowledge network, institutional and policy context are also theoretically presented in relation to CA system. Harmonizing this requires an understanding of the complex network of adopter-CA technology-adoption behaviour and global or national level policy formulation as well as strategic farm-level management.

Nitrogen-use efficiency of organic and conventional arable and dairy farming systems in Germany

Optimising nitrogen (N) management improves soil fertility and reduces negative environmental impacts. Mineral N fertilizers are of key importance in intensive conventional farming (CF). In contrast, organic farming (OF) is highly dependent on closed nutrient cycles, biological N fixation and crop rotations. However, both systems need to minimise N balances and maximise nitrogen-use efficiency (NUE). NUE of organic and conventional crop production systems was evaluated in three regions in Germany by analysing N input, N output and N balance of 30 pairs of one OF and one CF farm each from the network of pilot farms for the period 2009–2011; indicators were calculated using the farm management system REPRO. CF had higher N input in all farm pairs. In 90% of the comparisons, N output of CF was higher than OF, in 7% it was the same and in 3% lower. NUE was higher in 60% of the OF, the same in 37% and lower in only 3%. The NUE of crop production in OF was 91% (arable farms: 83%; mixed/dairy farms: 95%) and the NUE in CF was 79% (arable farms: 77%; dairy farms: 80%). N balance was lower in 90% of the OF. The yearly average N balance was four times higher in CF (59 kg N ha−1 a−1) than in OF (15 kg N ha−1 a−1). The results show a huge individual variability within OF and CF. Organic mixed/dairy farms had the lowest N balances and the highest NUE. A further expansion of OF area can help to reduce high N balances and increase the NUE of crop production.

Cocktails of pesticide residues in conventional and organic farming systems in Europe – Legacy of the past and turning point for the future

Considering that pesticides have been used in Europe for over 70 years, a system for monitoring pesticide residues in EU soils and their effects on soil health is long overdue. In an attempt to address this problem, we tested 340 EU agricultural topsoil samples for multiple pesticide residues. These samples originated from 4 representative EU case study sites (CSS), which covered 3 countries and four of the main EU crops: vegetable and orange production in Spain (S-V and S-O, respectively), grape production in Portugal (P-G), and potato production in the Netherlands (N-P). Soil samples were collected between 2015 and 2018 after harvest or before the start of the growing season, depending on the CSS. Conventional and organic farming results were compared in S-V, S-O and N-P. Soils from conventional farms presented mostly mixtures of pesticide residues, with a maximum of 16 residues/sample. Soils from organic farms had significantly fewer residues, with a maximum of 5 residues/sample. The residues with the highest frequency of detection and the highest content in soil were herbicides: glyphosate and its main metabolite AMPA (P-G, N-P, S-O), and pendimethalin (S-V). Total residue content in soil reached values of 0.8mgkg-1 for S-V, 2mgkg-1 for S-O and N-P, and 12mgkg-1 for P-G. Organic soils presented 70-90% lower residue concentrations than the corresponding conventional soils. There is a severe knowledge gap concerning the effects of the accumulated and complex mixtures of pesticide residues found in soil on soil biota and soil health. Safety benchmarks should be defined and introduced into (soil) legislation as soon as possible. Furthermore, the process of transitioning to organic farming should take into consideration the residue mixtures at the conversion time and their residence time in soil.

Soil organic carbon is affected by organic amendments, conservation tillage, and cover cropping in organic farming systems: A meta-analysis

Meta-analysis is often used to compare how soil health differs between organic and conventional farming systems. However, the burgeoning primary literature on organic farming now allows direct evaluation of the best management practices (BMPs) within organic farming systems on soil health improvements. Therefore, the main objective of this meta-analysis was to investigate the effect of BMPs, such as organic amendments, conservation tillage, and cover cropping, on soil health within organic farming systems. We focused on two principal soil health metrics: soil organic carbon (SOC) and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) concentrations. On average, adoption of BMPs increased depth-weighted SOC and MBC concentrations by 18 and 30 %, respectively, relative to organically-managed control groups. Among BMPs, organic amendments and conservation tillage practices showed net positive effect on soil health with 24 and 14 % increase in depth-weighted SOC concentrations, respectively. Although cover cropping did not have an overall influence on SOC concentrations, we found a temporal trend such that cover cropping significantly increased SOC concentrations after 5 years of its adoption. This indicates that the soil health benefits from BMPs accrue over time and highlights the need of long-term adoptability of BMPs to achieve agricultural sustainability. Future primary articles that focus on under-researched cropping practices in organic systems (e.g., crop rotation length and diversity, biochar addition) and the additive effects of multiple BMPs on soil health, will add to the synthesizable evidence base. Therefore, this meta-analysis confirms the soil health benefits of adopting BMPs within organic farming systems, identifies critical knowledge gaps, and provides directions for future organic farming research.

Effect of Low-Input Organic and Conventional Farming Systems on Maize Rhizosphere in Two Portuguese Open-Pollinated Varieties (OPV), "Pigarro" (Improved Landrace) and "SinPre" (a Composite Cross Population).

Maize is one of the most important crops worldwide and is the number one arable crop in Portugal. A transition from the conventional farming system to organic agriculture requires optimization of cultivars and management, the interaction of plant–soil rhizosphere microbiota being pivotal. The objectives of this study were to unravel the effect of population genotype and farming system on microbial communities in the rhizosphere of maize. Rhizosphere soil samples of two open-pollinated maize populations (“SinPre” and “Pigarro”) cultivated under conventional and organic farming systems were taken during flowering and analyzed by next-generation sequencing (NGS). Phenological data were collected from the replicated field trial. A total of 266 fungi and 317 bacteria genera were identified in “SinPre” and “Pigarro” populations, of which 186 (69.9%) and 277 (87.4%) were shared among them. The microbiota of “Pigarro” showed a significant higher (P < 0.05) average abundance than the microbiota of “SinPre.” The farming system had a statistically significant impact (P < 0.05) on the soil rhizosphere microbiota, and several fungal and bacterial taxa were found to be farming system-specific. The rhizosphere microbiota diversity in the organic farming system was higher than that in the conventional system for both varieties. The presence of arbuscular mycorrhizae (Glomeromycota) was mainly detected in the microbiota of the “SinPre” population under the organic farming systems and very rare under conventional systems. A detailed metagenome function prediction was performed. At the fungal level, pathotroph–saprotroph and pathotroph–symbiotroph lifestyles were modified by the farming system. For bacterial microbiota, the main functions altered by the farming system were membrane transport, transcription, translation, cell motility, and signal transduction. This study allowed identifying groups of microorganisms known for their role as plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) and with the capacity to improve crop tolerance for stress conditions, allowing to minimize the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. Arbuscular mycorrhizae (phyla Glomeromycota) were among the most important functional groups in the fungal microbiota and Achromobacter, Burkholderia, Erwinia, Lysinibacillus, Paenibacillus, Pseudomonas, and Stenotrophomonas in the bacterial microbiota. In this perspective, the potential role of these microorganisms will be explored in future research.

RNA-seq-based transcriptomic comparison of Saccharomyces cerevisiae during spontaneous and inoculated fermentations of organic and conventional grapes

Viticulture practices influence yeast genetics and phenotypes during wine fermentation by affecting grape quality and yeast microflora attached to grape berries, but the influence is limited understood yet. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of organic viticulture on wine quality and yeast transcriptome-wide response, and their associated mechanisms. This work compared the yeast transcriptional response during the spontaneous and inoculated fermentation of grapes from organic and conventional agriculture systems, through genome-wide analysis of gene expression, by Illumina Hiseq sequencing platforms. Transcriptome profiling showed that 991 and 96 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were detected in spontaneous and inoculated fermentations, respectively, indicating that organic viticulture was more likely to affect yeast transcriptome by influencing yeast microflora rather than grape/juice quality. Several pathways of Saccharomyces cerevisiae had more up-regulated DEGs than down-regulated ones in organic samples and in spontaneous fermentation group, including central carbon metabolism, translation, transport and catabolism, and energy metabolism. Besides, viticulture practices and fermentation modes had specific effects on wine quality. This study could enhance the understanding of yeast transcription changes during the fermentation of different grapes and with different strains, as well as elucidate the effect of viticulture practice on yeast transcriptome and wine quality.

Understanding farm-level differences in environmental impact and eco-efficiency: The case of rice production in Iran

Eco-efficiency, defined as the economic profit per unit of environmental impact, can largely differ between farms that produce the same crop. Understanding the underlying drivers of differences in eco-efficiency can help to identify effective options for increasing environmental product performance. Here, we analyzed differences in eco-efficiency between 200 paddy farms in Iran. With multiple linear regression modeling, we assessed the influences of farming system (conventional, limited input, organic) and yield, including potential interactions, on economic profit per unit of impact on ecosystems (terrestrial, freshwater, marine) and human health. Our results showed that the eco-efficiency of organic farming systems is (i) positively associated with yield, and (ii) systematically higher compared to conventional and limited input farming systems. We also found that the eco-efficiency of conventional and limited input systems is positively associated with yield for impacts on terrestrial ecosystems, but not for impacts on freshwater and marine ecosystems and human health. Our results reflect both higher economic profits and lower environmental impacts of organic paddy farms per unit of rice production compared to the other two production systems.

Agronomic Comparisons of Heirloom and Modern Processing Tomato Genotypes Cultivated in Organic and Conventional Farming Systems

The yield and fruit quality of processing tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum L.) have increased markedly over the past decades. The aim of this work was to assess the effects of the organic (OFS) and conventional farming systems (CFS) on the main agronomic parameters involved in processing tomato yield components and fruit quality traits of heirloom and modern genotypes. Marketable yield increased from heirloom to modern genotypes, both in OFS and in CFS, showing a difference of ≈20 t per hectare in favor of CFS. Total fruit yield (TY) was not improved from heirloom to modern assessed genotypes, and a difference of ≈35 t per hectare was observed in favor of CFS. In both farming systems, the highest marketable yield of modern genotypes was due to a higher number of fruits per plant, harvest index, nitrogen agronomic efficiency (NAE), and fruit water productivity. Moreover, the main growth parameters involved in the yield differences between OFS and CFS were the number of leaves per plant, the average fruit weight, the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), and NAE. It is noteworthy that fruit quality improvement in terms of color and brix per hectare was paralleled by a decrease of tomato pH in both farming systems. According to our results, we conclude that to reduce the current yield gap between OFS and CFS, agronomic and breeding efforts should be undertaken to increase leaf area index, fruit number per plant, and NAE for better genotype adaptation to organic farming systems.

Pesticide Residues and Their Metabolites in Grapes and Wines from Conventional and Organic Farming System.

In this study, the occurrence of pesticide residues and their metabolites in grapes and wines was investigated. A targeted analysis of 406 pesticide residues in 49 wine and grape samples from organic and conventional production were performed using the QuEChERS (Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged and Safe) extraction method, followed by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. Multiple residues (>4 residues/sample) were detected in 22 tested samples. The most commonly detected residues were fungicides (e.g., boscalid) and insecticides (e.g., methoxyfenozide). An ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography–high resolution mass spectrometry method (UHPLC–(HR)MS) was used for screening of pesticide metabolites. We also provide a method and database for detecting pesticide metabolites (extending our previously published database to 49 metabolites originating from 25 pesticides). An introduced strategy of targeted screening of pesticide metabolites was applied for authentication of 27 organic grapes and wines. In total, 23 samples were free of quantifiable residues/detected metabolites or contained residues approved for organic production.