This book is based on the assumption that “organic has lost its way�.  Paradoxically, it comes at a time when we witness the continuing of growth in organic food production and markets around the world. Yet, the book claims that organic has lost sight of its first or fundamental philosophical principles and ontological assumptions. The collection offers empirically grounded discussions that address the principles and fundamental assumptions of organic farming and marketing practices. The book draws attention to the core principles of organic and offers different clearly articulated and well-defined conceptual frameworks that offer new insights into organic practices. Divided into five parts, the book presents new perspectives on enduring issues, examines standards and certification, gives insights into much-discussed and additional market and consumer issues, and reviews the interplay of organic and conventional farming. The book concludes with a framework for rethinking ethics in the organic movement and reflections on the positioning of organic ethics.

This book is based on the assumption that "organic has lost its way". Paradoxically, it comes at a time when we witness the continuing of growth in organic food production and markets around the world. Yet, the book claims that organic has lost sight of its first or fundamental philosophical principles and ontological assumptions. The collection offers empirically grounded discussions that address the principles and fundamental assumptions of organic farming and marketing practices. The book draws attention to the core principles of organic and offers different clearly articulated and well-defined conceptual frameworks that offer new insights into organic practices. Divided into five parts, the book presents new perspectives on enduring issues, examines standards and certification, gives insights into much-discussed and additional market and consumer issues, and reviews the interplay of organic and conventional farming. The book concludes with a framework for rethinking ethics in the organic movement and reflections on the positioning of organic ethics.

Die Intensivierung der Anbau- und Bewirtschaftungsmethoden fuhrte in den vergangenen 50 Jahren zu einer Verarmung der Biodiversitat in mitteleuropaischen Landwirtschaftsgebieten. Durch landeseigene Gesetze und mit der Ratifizierung der Konvention uber die biologische Vielfalt (Agenda 21) ist die Schweiz verpflichtet, Massnahmen zur Erhaltung und Foerderung der Biodiversitat zu treffen. Als eine dieser Massnahmen wurden oekologische Ausgleichsflachen eingefuhrt, mit denen die naturliche Artenvielfalt im Landwirtschaftsgebiet gefoerdert werden sollte. Die Bewirtschafter erhalten fur bestimmte Arten von oekologischen Ausgleichsflachen finanzielle Entschadigungen, wahrend der Unterhalt von anderen oekologischen Ausgleichsflachen und Landschaftsstrukturelemente vom Bund nicht unterstutzt wird. Anhand von veroeffentlichten wissenschaftlichen Studien wird die Bedeutung der verschiedenen Arten von oekologischen Ausgleichsflachen und Landschaftsstrukturelementen fur die Erhaltung und Foerderung der Biodiversitat untersucht und mit der heutigen Entschadigungspraxis verglichen. Mit dieser Arbeit wird die Grundlage fur eine objektive Beurteilung und UEberprufung der bestehenden Ausgleichsbeitrage geschaffen. AEnderungen in den finanziellen Entschadigungen werden vorgeschlagen, damit die naturliche Arten- und Strukturvielfalt im Landwirtschaftsgebiet besser gefoerdert werden kann.

This collection features five peer-reviewed literature reviews on crop rotations in agriculture. The first chapter discusses the effects of crop rotation and intercropping management practices and their impact on soil health enhancement and stability. It also considers the importance of leguminous crops and soil organic matter in maintaining healthy soils, sustaining crop productivity and enhancing biodiversity. The second chapter examines the principles of crop rotation, precrop effects in crop rotations, and the nutrient effects of legumes and other rotation crops. It also reviews the role of rotation crops in suppressing weeds, diseases and pests and studies rotations and crop yields, as well as the challenge of designing a crop rotation. The third chapter illustrates how crop models account for the interactions between soil, genotypes, management, and climate, on crops grown in various rotations, and their effects on yield and environmental outcomes under current and future climate scenarios. The fourth chapter assesses the potential of decision support systems for crop rotations in improving soil health and agricultural sustainability. The final chapter reviews how crop rotations with non-cereal species can be implemented to substantially reduce inoculum sources for residue-borne cereal leaf diseases.

"Improving organic crop production provides a valuable resource for the current 'state of the art' on understanding mechanisms in these systems that are both similar and different from those in conventional systems....The book is especially recommended for libraries and other places that will provide access to large numbers of interested people, and as it gives a valuable overview on current organic farming to graduate students and others in academia." review by Professor Charles Francis in Agronomy Journal Global sales of organic products have grown significantly, yet organic farming remains a small percentage of overall agricultural production with lower yields than conventional methods. Organic crop cultivation thus faces a range of challenges if it is to grow significantly. This volume reviews the wealth of research addressing these challenges. Part 1 reviews developments in improving cultivation across the value chain, from breeding more robust, low input varieties to ways of maintaining soil health and improving crop nutrition. Part 2 discusses the key topic of pests and diseases with reviews of integrated pest and weed management as well as organic plant protection products. Part 3 covers ways of monitoring the environmental impact of organic farming whilst the final part of the book discusses ways of supporting organic cultivation in the developing world. With its distinguished editor and an international team of expert authors, this will be a standard reference for all those interested in understanding, improving and promoting organic farming.