Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Atkins diet relative to other diets with comparable caloric intake, which represent much larger
differences in composition.
Previous studies have not been able to provide definitive evidence for differences between
these two food production systems in terms of effect on human health; and this conclusion
suggests that the designs of these studies were possibly inadequate to provide such evidence,
and/or were not targeted to those aspects where differences are most likely.
However, there are ample examples that the methods used for food production do make a
difference for food composition or other quality aspects, and that these differences are large
enough to make a difference to consumer health. Although these differences may cause (yet
unproven) general differences in food quality between organic and conventional products,
many of the methods that benefit food quality are not necessarily restricted to either organic
or conventional systems. Understanding the links between production methods and food
quality therefore allows improvement of the products of any system, whether organic or con-
ventional. However, some of these benefits are linked with what is common practice in organic
farming, and for these the main challenge can be to conserve existing quality benefits during
further development of the productivity of organic methods.
Definitions of production systems and food qualities
Differences between production systems that may affect food quality
Organic food production is founded on some basic principles, regulated by a set of rules and
laws and is as such, relatively well defined. Conventional production operates within a larger
area of production conditions. One fundamental set of production parameters is the combina-
tion of nutrient and foreign compound inputs. Plant production can tentatively be described
as a function of plant nutrient inputs (primarily nitrogen) and foreign compounds (pesticides)
(Figure 13.1). Likewise, animal production can be described on the basis of inputs of feed (kJ)
and foreign compounds (antibiotics, hormones, growth promoters) (Figure 13.2). As the two
figures show, the production systems are not totally separated, although the average produc-
tion conditions are different. This is important when comparing organic versus conventional
food, because one can end up comparing two food items produced under literally identical
conditions. If this is the case, it is unlikely that the products are significantly different. However,
quality or health effects that systematically result from those factors that separate the systems
the most, will also result in a difference in product quality between the systems and conse-
quent health impacts, even if the food producers are not consciously trying to obtain this
quality and even when some products from each system will have overlapping properties. The
inf luence of cultivar and soil type is also important when comparing plant products, as well as
the inf luence of breed and housing system when comparing animal products. For both climate
and local national and regional conditions, traditions and preferences also have a profound
effect on a range of quality aspects. In particular, the production systems that tend to use dif-
ferent cultivars/breeds or procure raw materials produced in different locations have to be
taken into account in a comparison, if the purpose is to determine the effect on consumer
health, and/or satisfaction with sensory qualities of the food.
Strategies to measure the effects of production methods on food quality
It is very difficult to make an overall comparison of the organic and conventional production
systems as a result of the high variability and there is not much purpose in trying. Even if it
were possible to somehow assess the quality of enough volumes of organic and conventional
foods to provide precise figures for all significant differences between these two systems, this
