In part one, we describe the logical framework for organic crop production and the current understanding of how the contrasting agronomic regimes used in organic and conventional production lead to differences in (i) crop resistance and health, and (ii) nutritionally relevant crop-composition profiles. Our review is subdivided into three main parts. The interactions between agronomic practices permitted and prohibited/restricted in organic farming systems and crop health and quality parameters are described using a revised “Logical Framework for organic crop production systems” ( Figure 1). The main aim of this review article is to describe and critically discuss the current information on how integrated soil fertility and crop health management practices used in organic farming may affect the nutritional quality and safety of food crops and human health/wellbeing. As a result, organic and conventional crop production protocols differ substantially in (i) the type of crop protection protocols used, (ii) the types and quantities of organic and mineral fertilizers applied, and (iii) increasingly, the types of crop varieties used for production. They also allow the restricted use of raw phosphate, potassium sulphate and mineral micronutrient fertilizers if shown to be necessary by soil or plant analyses. Organic farming standards prescribe regular inputs of organic fertilizers (e.g., manure and composts) and the use of legume crops in rotation (to increase N-levels and balance N:P ratios in the soil). Organic crop production standards do, however, permit the use of certain plant (e.g., pyrethrum) or microbial extracts (e.g., spinosad) and/or mineral-based (e.g., Cu and S) crop-protection products, but it is recommended that these are only used as a last resort. Instead, weed, pest and disease control in organic farming is based on preventative and non-chemical crop protection methods, such as the use of (i) diverse crop rotations, (ii) more resistant/tolerant varieties, (iii) mechanical weeding, and (iv) biological disease and pest control products. Specifically, organic crop production prohibits the use of all synthetic chemical crop-protection products (including insecticides, acaricides, fungicides, herbicides, plant growth regulators and soil disinfection chemicals) and mineral N, KCl and superphosphate fertilizers. This is particularly true where current nutritional guidelines (increasing whole-grain, fruit and vegetable products, while reducing red-meat consumption) are implemented. The main conclusions from our review are that there is growing evidence that (i) agricultural intensification has resulted in a reduction in the nutritional quality of food and the sustainability of food production, and (ii) organic farming practices not only improve food quality and human health, but also food security.
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The article also identifies knowledge gaps and highlights the need for (i) long-term, factorial field experiments to understand the relative effects of agronomic and pedoclimatic drivers on crop quality and safety, and (ii) clinical trials and additional human cohort studies to confirm the positive health outcomes linked to organic food consumption. Specifically, we describe and discuss the results from: (i) dietary intervention studies which have found that organic food consumption substantially reduces pesticide exposure in humans and affects feed intake, growth, hormone balances and immune system responsiveness in animal models (ii) human cohort/epidemiological studies which have reported significant positive associations between organic food consumption and the lower incidence of a range of diseases including obesity, metabolic syndrome, cancer, hypospadias, pre-eclampsia, eczema and middle ear infections in infants (iii) interactions and trade-offs between diet (e.g., whole-grain, fruit and vegetables and reduced red-meat consumption) and food types (organic versus conventional) concerning public health and future food security. In the second part of the article, we critically review the evidence for the range of health benefits related to organic food consumption. Moreover, we summarize our current understanding of how quality gains are linked to the implementation of the “innovations” introduced into conventional crop production during the intensification or “green revolution” of agriculture over the last 100 years. In the first part of this article therefore, we critically review the evidence that organic farming methods improve the nutritional quality of food crops. The environmental and biodiversity benefits of organic farming are widely recognized, but there is still controversy about the effects of organic production methods on the nutritional composition of food and human health.
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