Organic Farming In Europe Research Articles

Further Limitations of Synthetic Fungicide Use and Expansion of Organic Agriculture in Europe Will Increase the Environmental and Health Risks of Chemical Crop Protection Caused by Copper-Containing Fungicides.

Copper-containing fungicides have been used in agriculture since 1885. The divalent copper ion is a nonbiodegradable multisite inhibitor that has a strictly protective, nonsystemic effect on plants. Copper-containing plant protection products currently approved in Germany contain copper oxychloride, copper hydroxide, and tribasic copper sulfate. Copper is primarily used to control oomycete pathogens in grapevine, hop, potato, and fungal diseases in fruit production. In the environment, copper is highly persistent and toxic to nontarget organisms. The latter applies for terrestric and aquatic organisms such as earthworms, insects, birds, fish, Daphnia, and algae. Hence, copper fungicides are currently classified in the European Union as candidates for substitution. Pertinently, copper also exhibits significant mammalian toxicity (median lethal dose oral = 300-2500 mg/kg body wt in rats). To date, organic production still profoundly relies on the use of copper fungicides. Attempts to reduce doses of copper applications and the search for copper substitutes have not been successful. Copper compounds compared with modern synthetic fungicides with similar areas of use display significantly higher risks for honey bees (3- to 20-fold), beneficial insects (6- to 2000-fold), birds (2- to 13-fold), and mammals (up to 17-fold). These data contradict current views that crop protection in organic farming is associated with lower environmental or health risks. Further limitations in the range and use of modern single-site fungicides may force conventional production to fill the gaps with copper fungicides to counteract fungicide resistance. In contrast to the European Union Green Deal goals, the intended expansion of organic farming in Europe would further enhance the use of copper fungicides and hence increase the overall risks of chemical crop protection in Europe. Environ Toxicol Chem 2024;43:19-30. © 2023 The Authors. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC.

PRINCIPALES MOTIVACIONES DEL CONSUMIDOR DE ALIMENTOS ECOLÓGICOS EN ITALIA. EL CASO DEL ACEITE DE OLIVA

A pesar del crecimiento generalizado de la agricultura ecológica en Europa, el comportamiento de los mercados de alimentos ecológicos es diferente entre países. Así, en algunos países como Italia hay un gran desequilibrio entre producción y consumo, y se provoca que parte de la producción se destine a mercados exteriores. Esta situación es evidente en el aceite de oliva, un producto emblemático en el sector agrícola italiano. En este contexto, el desarrollo de la demanda interna es una prioridad. Sin embargo, para diseñar estrategias de mercadotecnia efectivas que contribuyan a dicho desarrollo es necesario conocer el comportamiento del consumidor. Bajo la hipótesis de que el principal motivo de compra de los consumidores es de tipo altruista (relacionado con el medio ambiente, la ecología, el bienestar animal o el desarrollo rural y local), el objetivo de este estudio fue conocer las principales motivaciones del consumidor de aceite de oliva ecológico. La respuesta a este objetivo se basó en la Teoría Medios-Fin y para el análisis se utilizó la técnica de “hard laddering”, aplicada a una muestra de 25 sujetos. Los resultados mostraron que la salud es el fin último que motiva la compra del aceite de oliva ecológico, y que las motivaciones egoístas priman sobre las altruistas en la decisión de compra o consumo de este tipo de alimentos.

Organic livestock in the Republic of Croatia and Europe

The aim of the present study was to analyze the situation in organic livestock farming in Croatia and Europe. In the European countries in the year 2017, around 4.5 million cattle, 5.2 million sheep, 1 million pigs and 50 million poultry were registered in organic farming. The highest share of organically registered domestic animals compared to the total population in Europe and the European Union-28 was in cattle (3.5% and 5.2%) and sheep (3.4% and 5.0%), and the lowest in pigs (0.6% and 0.7%). In Croatia the highest share is in sheep (8.57%) and the lowest in poultry (0.02%) number. The largest increase in recent ten years in the EU has been in the number of poultry (by 103%) and the smallest in the number of pigs (by 47.6%), while the increase was the number of cattle and sheep was around 76% and 74%, respectively. In Croatia organic sheep production increased the most (by 65.0%), while the number of cattle and poultry increased by 62 and 64%, and the smallest increase is in the number of pigs (by 24%). The majority of organic meat of all species of domestic animals is produced in France and in United Kingdom, while organic milk is produced mostly in Germany and France. During the year 2018, most organic beef was produced in the UK and France, organic pork in France and Finland, organic sheep meat in Spain and the UK, organic goat meat in Spain, while most of organic poultry was produced in France and in the UK. A significant increase in the number of livestock in organic farming in Europe and in Croatia indicates an increasing interest in organic livestock farming, not only increase of farmers and processors but also increase of consumers of organic products in European countries.

Simulating soil fertility management effects on crop yield and soil nitrogen dynamics in field trials under organic farming in Europe

Soil fertility building measures should be explored at the short and long-term for an adequate evaluation of their impact on sustaining yields and of its environmental consequences in crop rotations under organic farming. For such a purpose, process-based crop models are potential useful tools to complement and upscale field observations under a range of soil and climatic conditions. Organic rotations differ in soil fertility dynamics in comparison to conventional farming but very few modelling studies have explicitly considered this specific situation. Here, we evaluate the FASSET model to predict the effects of different fertility management options in organic crop rotations on dry matter (DM) and nitrogen (N) yield, and soil N dynamics, including N2O emissions. For that, we used data from seven short and long-term field experiments in different agro-climatic environments in Europe (Norway, Denmark, Poland, Switzerland, Italy and Spain) including climate, soil and management data. Soil fertility building measures covered fertilization type, green manures, cover crops, tillage, crop rotation composition and management (organic or conventional). Model performance was evaluated by comparing observed and simulated values of crop DM and N yield, soil mineral N and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions using five complementary statistical indices. The model closely reproduced most observed DM and N yield trends and effects of soil fertility building measures in arable crops, particularly in cereals. Contrary, yields of grass-clover, especially N, were generally reproduced with low degree of accuracy. Model performance for simulating soil mineral N depended on site and the availability of soil and management information. Although high uncertainty was associated to the simulation of soil N dynamics, differences of cumulative N2O emissions between fertility building measures were reflected in model outputs. Aspects for modelling improvement include cover crop growth and decomposition, biological N fixation (BNF) or weed and pest soil-crop interactions. It is concluded that FASSET can be successfully used to investigate the impact of fertilization type, green manures, tillage and management (organic or conventional) on crop productivity and to a certain extent on soil N dynamics including soil N2O emissions at different soils and climates in organic farming in Europe.

Development of Organic Farming in Europe at the Crossroads: Looking for the Way Forward through System Archetypes Lenses

Over the last several decades, policymakers and stakeholders in the European Union (EU) have put considerable effort into increasing the adoption of organic farming, with the overall objective of its sustainable development. However, the growth of the organic sector has come with many challenges that jeopardize its sustainability. The question then is how to move organic farming in Europe forward and at the same time capitalize on its potential contribution to sustainability? Organic farming in the EU is a highly complex and dynamic food system and as such this question cannot be answered in isolation using a one-dimensional mind-set and tools of the past. In this paper, we use three system archetypes—Limits to Growth, Shifting the Burden and Eroding Goals—to sharpen our ability: (1) to analyze and anticipate difficulties in the development of organic farming in the EU under the current policy measures; and (2) to find effective ways to address these difficulties. A system archetype consists of a generic system structure that leads to unintended behavior over time and effective strategies for changing the structure into one that generates desirable behavior. The analysis reveals that in order to move forward, policymakers and stakeholders should reemphasize fundamental solutions rather than quick fixes that often generate unintended consequences. Specifically, Limits to Growth shows us that the leverage for moving organic farming out of the niche does not necessarily lie in increasing subsidies that push engines of growth, but rather in anticipating and managing its limits arising from, for instance, market dynamics or intrinsic environmental motivation. In turn, Shifting the Burden brings to attention how easily and unnoticeably the EU’s organic farming system can become dependent on third countries thereby undermining its own sustainability. Finally, Eroding Goals highlights that is it important to continuously improve regulatory standards based on an external frame of reference, as otherwise organic farming in the EU will continue on its trajectory towards conventionalization.

Development of reduced tillage systems in organic farming in Europe

AbstractNo-tillage and reduced tillage are considered sustainable options of conservation tillage. While US organic farming researchers have focused on no-tillage, European organic farming researchers have concentrated on reduced tillage through the reduction of tillage depth or the application of noninversion tillage practices. Combinations of these two approaches have been implemented by the use of the two-layer plow or the layer cultivator. These innovations often came from farmers, aiming at reducing off-farm inputs such as fuel, and saving costs and labor, while at the same time building up soil fertility. Systematic, documented research on reduced tillage systems in Europe started only 1–2 decades ago, with experiments in Germany, Switzerland and France. While most experiments mimic stockless farms, other experiments include fodder crops such as grass–clover ley and applications of manure and slurry as is typical for mixed farms with animals and crops. Soil organic carbon, microbial activity and soil structure are often improved in the upper soil layer under reduced tillage compared with plowed soils. However, these positive findings were confounded by lower yields in some cases and enhanced weed pressure, except for the two-layer plow. Often it was not possible to determine whether and to what extent yield reduction was due to weed competition or to nitrogen shortage, because of retarded nitrogen mineralization in spring in reduced tillage systems. In systems with manure use, also higher soil fertility measures concomitant with increased yields were reported under reduced tillage. Indeed, it is difficult to gain an overview on research activities dealing with reduced tillage in organic farming in Europe due to dispersed experimental infrastructures and the scarcity of peer-reviewed published literature. To close this knowledge gap a European Network is being established aiming at further developing reduced tillage systems in organic farming, addressing the issue of carbon sequestration and N2O emissions, as well as weed and nutrient management.

Editorial: Overview and comparison of conservation tillage practices and organic farming in Europe and North America

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Mixed effects of organic farming and landscape complexity on farmland biodiversity and biological control potential across Europe

1. Organic farming in Europe has been shown to enhance biodiversity locally, but potential interactions with the surrounding landscape and the potential effects on ecosystem services are less well known. 2. In cereal fields on 153 farms in five European regions, we examined how the species richness and abundance of wild plants, ground beetles and breeding birds, and the biological control potential of the area, were affected by organic and conventional farming, and how these effects were modified by landscape complexity (percentage of arable crops within 1000 m of the study plots). Information on biodiversity was gathered from vegetation plots, pitfall traps and by bird territory mapping. The biological control potential was measured as the percentage of glued, live aphids removed from plastic labels exposed in cereal fields for 24 h. 3. Predation on aphids was highest in organic fields in complex landscapes, and declined with increasing landscape homogeneity. The biological control potential in conventional fields was not affected by landscape complexity, and in homogenous landscapes it was higher in conventional fields than in organic fields, as indicated by an interaction between farming practice and landscape complexity. 4. A simplification of the landscape, from 20% to 100% arable land, reduced plant species richness by about 16% and cover by 14% in organic fields, and 33% and 5·5% in conventional fields. For birds, landscape simplification reduced species richness and abundance by 34% and 32% in organic fields and by 45·5% and 39% in conventional fields. Ground beetles were more abundant in simple landscapes, but were unaffected by farming practice. 5. Synthesis and applications. This Europe-wide study shows that organic farming enhanced the biodiversity of plants and birds in all landscapes, but only improved the potential for biological control in heterogeneous landscapes. These mixed results stress the importance of taking both local management and regional landscape complexity into consideration when developing future agri-environment schemes, and suggest that local-regional interactions may affect other ecosystem services and functions. This study also shows that it is not enough to design and monitor agri-environment schemes on the basis of biodiversity, but that ecosystem services should be considered too.

Financial relevance of organic farming payments for Western and Eastern European organic farms

AbstractOrganic farming in the European Union has been supported widely since 1994. Against the background of discussions concerning the design and level of organic farming support, and the relevance of organic payments for the economic success of organic farms, the question emerges as to the impact of support payments on the sustainable development of organic farming in Europe. Different databases and methodological approaches have been chosen to demonstrate the role of organic farming payments for the viability of organic farms for selected Western and Eastern European study countries. Economic analyses are based on national Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) in the Western European countries and on ‘typical farms’ in the Eastern European group. As a supplement to the modeling analyses, a detailed survey of 50 organic farms was carried out in each of the study countries. Organic farming payments were assessed to be ‘important’ or ‘very important’ to the economic situation on farms by the majority of the farmers surveyed. The outcome of the economic analyses shows that organic farming payments contribute on average 4–6% of gross output in the Western European countries and 4–19% in the Eastern European countries studied. The results put the level of specific support for organic farming into perspective, as other support payments and market returns contribute larger shares of total farm revenue in all the countries analyzed. Organic farming payments account for 10–30% of family farm income plus wages in Western European study countries and—after EU accession—up to three-quarters in some of the Eastern European countries, thus highlighting the considerable vulnerability of organic farms to changes in organic farming policy. As a general trend in both the West and the East, it can be observed that the policy dependency of farms has increased over recent years. Changes in organic area support, which are actually under discussion in some countries, must be carried out with a sense of proportion, since support payments will continue to play an important role in the profitability of organic farms. Nevertheless, in order to reduce dependency on area payments, organic farming support should follow an integrated approach, using a mix of support measures including, e.g., the improvement of processing and marketing facilities, support for farm cooperation and activities designed to enhance demand.

The Strategic Turn of Organic Farming in Europe: From a Resource Based to an Entrepreneurial Approach of Organic Marketing Initiatives

This chapter explores organic farming's development potential in Europe. It analyses the enterprise capacities to reach a workable structure of the supply chains, in order to market good products at reasonable prices. This study has been carried out in the framework of a European project (OMIaRD). This aimed to assess the impact of the Organic Marketing Initiatives (OMI) on Rural Development. The results show after a growing phase, most of the organic marketing initiatives meet a strategic turn point, linked to their ability to face logistic problems, linked to an increasing of collected, processed and marketed volumes. This strategic turn leads them to take decisions together with their stakeholders, such that the economic and ethical goals are not questioned by the changes to be implemented.

List of Contributors

Citation (2006), "List of Contributors", Marsden, T. and Jonathan Murdoch†, J. (Ed.) Between the Local and the Global (Research in Rural Sociology and Development, Vol. 12), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Bingley, pp. ix-x. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1057-1922(06)12016-8 Publisher: Emerald Group Publishing Limited Copyright © 2006, Emerald Group Publishing Limited Book Chapters List of Contributors Editorial Advisory Board Preface and Dedication Introduction between the Local and the Global: Confronting Complexity in the Contemporary Food Sector Network Theories and Political Economy: From Attrition to Convergence? Differentiated Standardization, Standardized Differentiation: The Complexity of the Global Agrifood System Audit Cultures and the Antipodes: The Implications of EurepGAP for New Zealand and Australian Agri-food Industries Neoliberalism and the Problem of Space: Competing Rationalities of Governance in Fair Trade and Mainstream Agri-Environmental Networks Post-Rural Processes in Wealthy Rural Areas: Hybrid Networks and Symbolic Capital Highlighting the Retro Side of Innovation and its Potential for Regime Change in Agriculture The Dynamics of Local Development: From Hunger to Quality Food Cases from Northeastern Brazil Slow Food's Presidia: What do Small Producers do with Big Retailers? Just Values or Just Value? Remaking the Local in Agro-Food Studies Exploring Dimensions of Qualities in Food Alternative Food Networks in the South West of England: Towards a New Agrarian Eco-Economy? The Strategic Turn of Organic Farming in Europe: From a Resource Based to an Entrepreneurial Approach of Organic Marketing Initiatives

Organic livestock production in Europe: aims, rules and trends with special emphasis on animal health and welfare

Organic farming in Europe has increased during the last decade but the market share is still relatively low with less than 3% of farmed arable land and an even smaller proportion of farm animal species raised in organic livestock production systems. In many aspects, the biological and ethological needs of animals in organic farming systems are better met than on conventional farms. Emphasis is placed on high standards in product quality, animal health and welfare. However, limitations due to the strict organic rules place high demands on management qualifications. Practical experience shows that organic livestock production is certainly no guarantee of good animal health and welfare. It is suggested to develop quality assurance programmes for process quality assessment to ensure a certain level of management standard. Epidemiological studies are needed to evaluate health risk factors for health and welfare problems in organic livestock production. The concept of organic animal farming can only fulfil the criteria for sustainability, if all requirements on animal health and welfare, together with product quality and ecological soundness, are strongly considered and controlled.

Recent Development and Political Acceptance of Organic Farming in Europe

Organic farming has experienced a major break through in Europe during the 1990s. The suggestion here, is to see it as an implantation of post‐modernist values into agriculture and as representing a break in the agriculture self‐rule,which developed during the 20th century. This rather unusual situation needs an open theoretical framework. Such a framework is suggested. It focuses on institutionalization and combines institutional theory with social movement theory and theory of coalition making. The need for a non‐deterministic view on organic farming development is further justified by referring to a comparative analysis of the development of organic farming in eighteen European countries. It emphasizes the need for a distinct organic farming identity and suggests that the growth in European organic farming is neither explained by political support nor by pure market forces. Rather organic farming growth is promoted through a continuous series of initiatives originating in different parts of society.

Book reviews. Organic Farming in Europe: Economics and Policy, vols 1-4 and vol. 7. N Lampkin, C Foster, S Padel, P Midmore, R Zaniole, D Gambelli, J Nichelsen, U Hamm, E Wynen, E Roth

Book reviews. Organic Farming in Europe: Economics and Policy, vols 1-4 and vol. 7. N Lampkin, C Foster, S Padel, P Midmore, R Zaniole, D Gambelli, J Nichelsen, U Hamm, E Wynen, E Roth