RESEARCH AND STUDIES

Studies show -- Organic Can Feed the World

• NEW! Core Truths: Key Findings Behind the Benefits of Organic Food and Farming (June 2009)
  Compiled by the Organic Center, discusses Organic Food and Children's Nutrition, Feeding the World, Pesticides and Children's Health, GMOs, Animal Cloning in Food and Agriculture, and more.


• Organic farming can feed the world, University of Michigan study shows (2009)
  Organic farming can yield up to three times as much food on individual farms in developing countries, as low-intensive methods on the same land--according to new findings which refute the long-standing claim that organic farming methods cannot produce enough food to feed the global population.


• Regenerative Organic Farming: A Solution to Global Warming (2008)
  In a new report, the Rodale Institute calls for a dramatic shift from costly, chemical-intensive industrial farming systems to regenerative organic systems, which it says can help the world feed itself.
  
  
• Organic Farming 'Could Feed Africa' (October 2008)
  Major study from the United Nations, reported in The Independent
  
  
• Myth: Sustainable Farming Methods Cannot Feed the World (July 2008)
  Myth Buster Series from the Land Stewardship Project in Minnesota. 2 page PDF


• Can Organic Feed the World? (2007)
  Study published by the Cambridge University Press. 6 page PDF
  
  
• Organic Ag. and the Global Food Supply (June 2006)
  Research paper from the University of Michigan course, "Food, Land and Society". 23 page PDF

Research Papers, Studies, Resources

• NEW! Iowa State University Takes Protection of Organic Products to Next Level
  AMES, IOWA, December 4, 2009 - Under government regulations organic products are not permitted to contain preservatives such as nitrate or nitrite. Joseph Sebranek, an Iowa State University food science professor, has found a way to use natural ingredients to fight the potential of pathogenic contamination in organic products.


• "The Genetic Engineering of Food and the Failure of Science
  Part 1: The Development of a Flawed Enterprise"


• "The Genetic Engineering of Food and the Failure of Science
  Part 2: Academic Capitalism and the Loss of Scientific Integrity"
  
  Dr. Don Lotter recently published these two papers in the International Journal of the Sociology of Agriculture and Food (Vol. 16, p. 31-49 & 50-68) critiquing the failure of the scientific community to assess objectively the implications of biotechnology. The report discusses the lack of regulation and the willingness of the federal government to comply with the wishes of biotech companies, the dismissal by the biotech community of extensive reports documenting serious ecological impacts of genetic engineering, including horizontal gene transfer and hybridization, and the flaws and potential repercussions of the process of genetic engineering. Dr. Lotter has compiled a list of cases in the scientific literature reporting detrimental health effects of transgenic plants, including negative developmental effects, links to cancer and mass allergic reactions to Bt pollen, along with well-documented reports of livestock mortality from grazing Bt cotton. The second half of the article takes the scientific community to task for not remaining objective in the evaluation of transgenic crops and for working to closely with biotech companies, as well as for allowing the silencing of research results that were unfavorable to the biotech industry.


• Failure to Yield
  This new report by the Union of Concerned Scientists criticizes the biotech industry for not living up to its oft repeated promise to increase yields and therefore combat world hunger. It reviews the evidence that genetically modified crops have not led to significant increases in yields and in some cases yielded less (as with RoundUp Ready soybeans). The report also examines some of the commonly held misconceptions relating to the actual benefits of herbicide tolerant and Bt genes to crop production.


• Impacts of Genetically Engineered Crops on Pesticide Use: The First Thirteen Years
  The Organic Center, the Center for Food Safety, and the Union of Concerned Scientists Dec. 2009
  According to this report, "GE crops have been responsible for an increase of 383 million pounds of herbicide use in the U.S. over the first 13 years of commercial use of GE crops (1996-2008)." Interestingly, pesticide use drops slightly during the first few years of use of GE crops (1.2%, 2.3%, and 2.3% per year for 1996-1998, respectively), but increased by 20% in 2007 and by 27% in 2008. This is largely due to a growing resistance to glysophate (aka "Roundup," the herbicide whose resistance was engineered into seeds, which was developed by Monsanto).


• No Sure Fix: Prospects for Reducing Nitrogen Fertilizer Pollution Through Genetic Engineering
  Union of Concerned Scientists 2009.
  NSAC, December 9, 2009 - New report on biotechnology's inability to improve nitrogen efficiency in agricultural crops. Pollution from nitrogen overuse in agriculture is the largest domestic, human-caused source of nitrous oxide, a global warming gas that is nearly 300 times more potent than carbon dioxide. The biotechnology industry has tried to create commercial crops which are able to thrive with less oxygen; however a decade of research has provided no results. The report also states that traditional plant breeding and practices such as planting cover crops have proven to reduce the overuse of nitrogen fertilizers.


• Community Food Enterprise: Local Success in a Global Marketplace Wallace Center 2009
  NSAC, December 2009 - This report profiles 24 locally-owned food businesses from around the world and provides detailed analyses of their financial, social, and environmental performance.


• Is Local Food More Expensive? A Consumer Price Perspective on Local and Non-Local Foods Purchased in Iowa Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture 2009
  The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture's Marketing and Food Systems Initiative conducted consumer market research in June, July, and August 2009 to examine what Iowa consumers pay for locally grown products and how these prices compare to non-local market channel prices.


• Organic and conventional production systems in the Wisconsin Integrated Cropping Systems Trial:
  II. Economic and risk analysis 1993-2006. Chavas, J.-P., J.L. Posner, and J.L. Hedtcke. 2009.
  The trial this paper covers compares three cropping and three forage systems at two sites in Wisconsin.
  Two organic systems are part of the comparison, one a diverse crop rotation and the other a diverse forage system. The authors found that the organic systems were more profitable than the conventional systems with one exception: the rotational grazing system at one location. Including organic premiums in the analysis was a crucial factor contributing to the profitability of the organic systems; without organic premiums, the organic systems were not economically competitive.


• New Evidence Confirms the Nutritional Superiority of Plant-Based Organic Foods (March 2008)
  In-depth, 53 page study published by The Organic Center. Includes an overview of published studies comparing the nutrient content of organic and conventional food, differences in the nutrient content of organic and conventionally grown foods, and more.


• UN Environment Program report "Organic Agriculture and Food Security in Africa" (October 2008)
  Organic farming in Africa receives strong UN endorsement. This 61 page report finds that farm yields remain stable, and often rise after conversion to organic agriculture, a finding that "...challenges the popular myth that organic agriculture cannot increase agricultural productivity."


• Greenbook 2008: A Multitude of Ideas to Sustain Agriculture (September 2008)
  Published annually for 19 years, the Greenbook highlights the results of innovative demonstration projects that test new approaches to marketing agricultural products as well as raising crops and livestock.


• Research Symposium Proceedings from the 2008 Organic Farming Conference (February 2008)
  In-depth booklet detailing the proceedings. 65 page PDF


• Resources for Organic Farming Research (updated 2008)
  List of helpful links and resources. 1 page PDF


• 2007 Organic Farm Performance in Minnesota
  A report summarizing the individual farm financial results for participants in the
  Minnesota Organic Farm Business Management Project for 2007 with comparisons
  to 2006 performance. Whole farm information and enterprise costs and returns are
  reported. A total of 65 farms participated in the program.


• Organic Dairy and Meat Improves Quality of Mother's Breast Milk (July 2007)
  Press release from Cornucopia Institute out of Wisconsin. Study published in
  the British Journal of Nutrition. 2 page PDF


• Economic study of Organic Dairy Farming (June 2007)
  Discusses the potential rewards of organic dairy farming in Wisconsin,
  New England and Quebec, and the costs. 13 page PDF


• Transition to Organic Cropping Systems under Risk (May 2006)
  Analyzes the risks, returns and optimal adoption strategies of a MN farm
  switching from a conventional to an organic cropping system. 24 page PDF

• Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture
  Located in Ames, Iowa the Leopold Center "explores and cultivates alternatives
  that secure healthier people and landscapes in Iowa and the nation".


• Organic Farming Research Foundation and Organic Ag Info
  A portal of scientifically-based information on organic agriculture.


• University of MN Organic Ecology
  Information, education and announcements about organic ecology research and outreach.


• Cornell University Organic Research


• Iowa State University Organic Research
  Soybean variety trials, no-till comparisons and more.


• USDA Econ Research Service
  Results of government data collection, statistics.


• Organic Trade Association (OTA)
  Good consumer info. "How to go Organic" for farmers, plus links to various production resources.


• The Rodale Institute
  Current organics news and research. Expert resources for crop and livestock production, direct marketing, local food systems, policy campaigns and community building collaborations.


• The Organic Center
  A national nonprofit research and education organization dedicated to advancing scientific research behind the health and environmental benefits of organic food and farming. The Center works with leading universities and researchers throughout the world to compile credible information to help educate consumers, media, businesses, policy makers and others about the proven benefits of organic to human health and animal health, in helping prevent global warming, and in conserving the environment. tel 303-499-1840, info@organic-center.org.