scholarly journals Enhancing Yields in Organic Crop Production by Eco-Functional Intensification

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erik Steen Jensen ◽  
Laurent Bedoussac ◽  
Georg Carlsson ◽  
Etienne-Pascal Journet ◽  
Eric Justes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Farming ◽  
Nitrate Leaching ◽  
Resource Use ◽  
Organic Agriculture ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Unit Area ◽  
Climate Impacts ◽  
Efficient Tool ◽  
Use Of Resources ◽  
Cereal Grain

<p>Organic agriculture faces challenges to enhance food production per unit area and simultaneously reduce the environmental and climate impacts, e.g. nitrate leaching per unit area and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per unit mass produced. Eco-functional intensification is suggested as a means to reach these objectives. Eco-functional intensification involves activating more knowledge and refocusing the importance of ecosystem services in agriculture. Organic farmers manage agrobiodiversity by crop rotation (diversification in time). However, sole cropping (SC) of genetically identical plants in organic agriculture may limit resource use efficiency and yield per unit area. Intercropping (IC) of annual grain species, cultivar mixes, perennial grains, or forage species and forestry and annual crops (agroforestry) are examples of spatial crop diversification. Intercropping is based on eco-functional intensification and may enhance production by complementarity in resource use in time and space. Intercropping is based on the ecological principles of competition, facilitation and complementarity, which often increases the efficiency in acquisition and use of resources such as light, water and nutrients compared to sole crops, especially in low-input systems. Here we show that IC of cereals and grain legumes in European arable organic farming systems is an efficient tool for enhancing total grain yields compared to their respective sole crops. Simultaneously, we display how intercropping of cereals and legumes can be used as an efficient tool for weed management and to enhance product quality (i.e. cereal grain protein concentration). We discuss how intercropping contributes to efficient use of soil N sources and minimizes losses of N by nitrate leaching via <em>Ecological Precision Farming</em>. It is concluded that intercropping has a strong potential to increase yield and hereby reduce global climate impacts such as GHG kg<sup>-1</sup> grain. Finally, we discuss likely barriers and lock-in effects for increased use of intercropping in organic farming and suggest a roadmap for innovation and implementation of IC strategies in organic agriculture.</p>

EVALUATION OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF ORGANIC CROP PRODUCTION

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 749-763
Author(s):  
A.V. Shelenok ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Farming ◽  
Organic Agriculture ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Agricultural Crops ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Slow Development ◽  
Organic Products ◽  
The World

The article examines intensive and organic technologies for growing agricultural crops, their impact on the environment, human health, indicates what are the advantages and disadvantages of organic agriculture. It is noted that with intensive technologies for growing agricultural crops, their yield increases, but if the doses of chemicals are not observed, soil fertility is disturbed, the environment is polluted. Devoid of the disadvantages inherent in intensive technologies, organic farming is significantly inferior in productivity to it, due to which it is not able to reach the same production volumes, to ensure a comparable level of domestic consumption, which is demonstrated by traditional farming. The article compares the effectiveness of traditional and organic agronomic farming systems. It is shown that in the case of comparability of yield indicators, traditional technologies at lower selling prices are more effective in terms of profit and profitability indicators. The reasons for the slow development of the organic segment in the agricultural production of Russia are revealed. In this regard, the topic of support for foreign and Russian agricultural producers, including organic products, as well as the underdevelopment of its domestic market is touched upon. It is noted that, in contrast to developed countries, Russia’s share in the world market for organic products is insignificant. Therefore, it is too early to talk about the prospects for the development of organic agriculture in Russia. In the world, organic farming is stimulated, it occupies its own niche, but in all respects it lags far behind the traditional method of growing agricultural products. Its share in the world food market ranges from 2.6 to 3%.

Assessment of the environmental sustainability of organic farming: Definitions, indicators and the major challenges

2012 ◽  
Vol 92 (6) ◽  
pp. 981-996 ◽  
Author(s):  
Niels Halberg
Keyword(s):  
Organic Farming ◽  
Resource Use ◽  
Organic Agriculture ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Natural Capital ◽  
Agricultural Sustainability ◽  
Functional Integrity ◽  
Intensive Farming ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Improved Performance

Halberg, N. 2012. Assessment of the environmental sustainability of organic farming: Definitions, indicators and the major challenges. Can. J. Plant Sci. 92: 981–996. The debate over agricultural sustainability continues due to the challenges of reducing externalities of intensive farming methods and preserving vital natural capital, but many definitions of sustainability are too wide to allow for a prioritized assessment. This paper uses a more narrow definition of agricultural sustainability focusing on the functional integrity of a system to highlight specific aspects of vital importance for the long-term resilience and reproducibility of agricultural systems. Key areas of resource sufficiency are also identified. Based on a review of scientific literature the relative sustainability of organic agriculture is assessed with a focus on environmental impact and resource use in Europe and North America. While there are many examples of organic agriculture with improved performance in terms of soil fertility and preservation of biodiversity, in other aspects – such as resource use per kilogram product – the difference to conventional farming is less important. The paper presents a framework for selection of indicators based on the principles of organic agriculture which may be used to monitor and improve the performance of organic agriculture with respect to functional integrity and resource sufficiency. The differences between comparable organic farms may be used for improving farm practices through a benchmarking process.

scholarly journals Pertanian Organik sebagai Salah Satu Konsep Pertanian Berkelanjutan

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-132
Author(s):  
Yuriansyah Yuriansyah ◽  
Dulbari Dulbari ◽  
Hery Sutrisno ◽  
Arief Maksum
Keyword(s):  
Organic Farming ◽  
Organic Agriculture ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Farming System ◽  
Agricultural System ◽  
Study Program ◽  
Alternative Farming ◽  
Organic Farming System

Excessive use of inorganic chemicals results in adverse impacts on land and plants. In the midst of the community, there is anxiety about the high content of pesticide residues in agricultural products. There is a need to develop alternative farming systems that are able to produce quantities and quality of healthy products in a sustainable manner. One agricultural system that supports the concept is the organic farming system. The basic principles of organic farming are: (1) Keeping the ecosystem healthy, (2) Applying the principle of efficiency to the cultivation system, (3) Conducting production activities with the concept of sustainable agriculture, (4) Producing pesticide-free products, and (6) Maintaining environmental sustainability. Food Crop Production Study Program Lampung State Polytechnic makes Organic Agriculture as one of the leading competencies for its graduates. The establishment of the Organic Agriculture Business Unit on campus will increase student competencies, foster entrepreneurship, be a place for competency internships, and as an independent source of income.

scholarly journals Rating of Spring Wheat Varieties (Triticum aestivum L.) According to Their Suitability for Organic Agriculture

Agronomy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1900
Author(s):  
Beata Feledyn-Szewczyk ◽  
Grażyna Cacak-Pietrzak ◽  
Leszek Lenc ◽  
Jarosław Stalenga
Keyword(s):  
Grain Yield ◽  
Organic Farming ◽  
Spring Wheat ◽  
Organic Agriculture ◽  
Plant Density ◽  
Infestation Rate ◽  
Organic System ◽  
Cereal Grain ◽  
Proper Variety ◽  
Weed Infestation

The selection of a proper variety is one of the main factors influencing the quantity and quality of cereal grain yield in organic agriculture. The aim of the study was to determine the suitability of 13 varieties of spring wheat for cultivation in organic farming according to their competitive potential against weeds, susceptibility to fungal diseases and grain yield. Due to the large share of cereals in organic farms both in Poland and in Europe, the research results could be applied by organic farming system farmers and advisors. High-yielding varieties in the organic system were: KWS Torridon, Kandela, Arabella, Zadra and Waluta. The KWS Torridon and Kandela varieties were resistant to fungal pathogens infestation, while Brawura, Izera, Korynta and Ostka Smolicka showed the highest infestation rate. Ethos variety yields were the lowest due to its low plant density, with a high weed infestation rate. The wheat yields proved to be significantly correlated with plant density and the thousand grain weight, but no significant negative effects of weed infestation and pathogen infestation were found. A synthesis of the three-year results showed that the varieties most useful for organic farming were: Arabella, KWS Torridon, Kandela, Katoda, Waluta and Zadra.

Prospects to utilise intercrops and crop variety mixtures in mechanised, rain-fed, temperate cropping systems

2016 ◽  
Vol 67 (12) ◽  
pp. 1252 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew L. Fletcher ◽  
John A. Kirkegaard ◽  
Mark B. Peoples ◽  
Michael J. Robertson ◽  
Jeremy Whish ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Resource Use ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Hydraulic Redistribution ◽  
Grain Legume ◽  
Genotypic Differences ◽  
Potential Productivity ◽  
Use Of Resources ◽  
Cereal Grain ◽  
Productivity Increase

Despite the potential productivity benefits, intercrops are not widely used in modern, mechanised grain cropping systems such as those practised in Australia, due to the additional labour required and the added complexity of management (e.g. harvesting and handling of mixed grain). In this review we investigate this dilemma using a two-dimensional matrix to categorise and evaluate intercropping systems. The first dimension describes the acquisition and use of resources in complementary or facilitative interactions that can improve resource use efficiency. The outcome of this resource use is often quantified using the land equivalent ratio (LER). This is a measure of the relative land area required as monocultures to produce the same yields as achieved by an intercrop. Thus, an LER greater than 1 indicates a benefit of the intercrop mixture. The second dimension describes the benefits to a farming system arising not only from the productivity benefits relating to increased LER, but from other often unaccounted benefits related to improved product quality, rotational benefits within the cropping system, or to reduced business risks. We contend that a successful intercrop must have elements in both dimensions. To date most intercropping research has considered only one of these two possible dimensions. Intercrops in large, mechanised, rain-fed farming systems can comprise those of annual legumes with non-legume crops to improve N nutrition, or other species combinations that improve water use through hydraulic redistribution (the process whereby a deep-rooted plant extracts water from deep in the soil profile and releases a small proportion of this into the upper layers of the soil at night), or alter disease, pest or weed interactions. Combinations of varieties within cereal varieties were also considered. For our focus region in the southern Australian wheatbelt, we found few investigations that adequately dealt with the systems implications of intercrops on weeds, diseases and risk mitigation. The three main intercrop groups to date were (1) ‘peaola’ (canola-field pea intercrops) where 70% of intercrops (n = 34) had a 50% productivity increase over the monocultures, (2) cereal-grain legume intercrops (n = 22) where 64% showed increases in crop productivity compared with monocultures and (3) mixtures of cereal varieties (n = 113) where there was no evidence of a productivity increase compared with the single varieties. Our review suggests that intercropping may have a role in large rain-fed grain cropping systems, based on the biophysical benefits revealed in the studies to date. However, future research to develop viable intercrop options should identify and quantify the genotypic differences within crop species for adaptation to intercropping, the long-term rotational benefits associated with intercrops, and the yield variability and complexity-productivity trade-offs in order to provide more confidence for grower adoption. Farming systems models will be central to many of these investigations but are likely to require significant improvement to capture important processes in intercrops (e.g. competition for water, nutrients and light).

LEGAL CONDITIONS OF ORGANIC FARMING IN POLAND

2017 ◽  
Vol XIX (4) ◽  
pp. 148-153
Author(s):  
Anna Olkiewicz
Keyword(s):  
Organic Farming ◽  
Organic Agriculture ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Genetically Modified Organisms ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Plant Protection ◽  
Plant Protection Products ◽  
World Market ◽  
Chemical Fertilizers ◽  
The World

Agriculture is one of the basic human activities. This activity, however, also had a negative impact on the environment. For decades, organic farming, understood as a system of management of sustainable crop production and livestock within the farm, has been developing. Constantly increases both the number of organic producers and the area of organic farming. Organic agriculture is currently supported with success through the development of the law in this area, both on the world market, European and Polish. Thanks to regulations gradually entered into force a consumer acquiring products referred to as organic is convinced that they are free from contamination, such as residues of plant protection products and hormones, and when their production not used chemical fertilizers and genetically modified organisms.

scholarly journals Investigating the leading drivers of organic farming: A survival analysis

2022 ◽  
Vol 52 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Waqar Akram ◽  
Nida Akram ◽  
Wang hongshu ◽  
Shahla Andleeb ◽  
Khalil ur Rehman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Survival Analysis ◽  
Organic Farming ◽  
Organic Agriculture ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Multiple Criteria Decision Making ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Agricultural Policies ◽  
Analytic Hierarchy ◽  
Environmentally Sound ◽  
Hierarchy Process

ABSTRACT: This research evaluated farmers’ decisions to adopt organic farming. It was first introduced by developed countries to minimize environmental impacts originated by intensive use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides to enhance production yield. Although, organic farming offers environmentally sound methodologies for crop production, but Asian farmers are reluctant to adopt organic farming. In this study, a survival analysis (SA) was employed to determine the reasons for and the time is taken by farmers to adopt organic agriculture. This research studied the farmers’ goals, agricultural policies, and attitude towards risk, as covariates in the survival analysis. A multiple criteria decision-making method based on the Analytic Hierarchy Process was used to evaluate the farmers’ goals. Data were collected from agricultural farms located in three districts in Punjab, Pakistan. A questionnaire was used to collect empirical evidence. This study reported that the farmers’ goals were crucial to their acceptance of organic farming; furthermore, young farmers and farmers with risk-inclined attitudes were more prone to adopting organic farming. The study also determined that change in policy and introduce special package for organic agriculture can encouraged the adoption of organic methods.

scholarly journals Conventionalization of Organic Farms in Germany: An Empirical Investigation Based on a Composite Indicator Approach

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 2934 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Seidel ◽  
Thomas Heckelei ◽  
Sebastian Lakner
Keyword(s):  
Organic Farming ◽  
Organic Agriculture ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Animal Husbandry ◽  
Composite Indicator ◽  
Organic Farms ◽  
Indicator Approach ◽  
Linear Aggregation ◽  
Farm Types

The term “conventionalization” of organic agriculture was created to depict the controversially discussed phenomenon that organic agriculture departs from the core organic principles on which it is based. We present an empirical, index-based approach to investigate developments of organic farming practices towards conventionalization. An index of conventionalization can be used as a monitoring tool to support policymakers to further develop agricultural regulations. We calculate composite indicators for three farm types: farms specialized on crop production, farms specialized on animal husbandry, and mixed farms. Principal component analysis serves to derive objective weights based on the correlations between indicators which then allow a linear aggregation to the composite indicator. Results show that developments towards conventionalization of the whole organic farming sector cannot be detected for German farms between 2000 and 2009. Therefore, we do not see the necessity for changes in regulation of the organic sector with regard to conventionalization.

The main directions of scientific support for the implementation of the system of organic farming in Ukraine

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (90) ◽  
pp. 22-24
Author(s):  
V.F. Kaminskyi ◽  
S.G. Korsun
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Organic Farming ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Land Ownership ◽  
Scientific Support ◽  
Speed Up ◽  
Organic Crop Production ◽  
Advanced Production ◽  
And Training ◽  
Organizational Issue

The aim of this work was to study the basic directions of scientific support introduction of organic farming in Ukraine. The study used methods of comparison, synthesis, analysis, induction and deduction. The article indicated on the main areas that need special attention from researchers and suggests one possible mechanism to remove the remaining obstacles to organizational issue introduction of scientific developments in the production of organic and training areas. This can speed up the creation of new and manage existing land ownership and land use organic farming with the introduction of advanced production technology of organic crop production.

METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH TO EVALUATING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF RESOURCE USE BY MEDICAL ORGANIZATIONS

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (7) ◽  
pp. 62-69
Author(s):  
S. S. BUDARIN ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Medical Care ◽  
Resource Use ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Use Of Resources ◽  
Quality Of Medical Care ◽  
Methodological Approaches ◽  
Performance Audit ◽  
Available Resources

The article reveals methodological approaches to evaluating the effectiveness of the use of resources of medi-cal organizations in order to improve the availability and quality of medical care based on the application of the methodology of performance audit; a methodological approach to the use of individual elements of the efficiency audit methodology for evaluating the performance of medical organizations and the effectiveness of the use of available resources is proposed.

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