Biodiversity and organic agriculture

Abstract

Biodiversity on the planet Earth has been threatened for decades, primarily due to human activities. According to current scientific knowledge, the number of species decreases at a rate of 1,000 to 10,000 times higher than in previous times. Even though international strategic goals aim stopping the global changes in the existing biodiversity, it can be concluded that as many as 74 species daily disappear, that is 27,000 species annually, implying the disappearance of 20% of recent species in the next three to four decades. Preserving biodiversity is one of the most important goals of global environmental protection, sought for science and policy to participate in. Adopted Conventions on biological diversity and biodiversity, provide a key indication of progress towards achieving the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity (20112020). Biological diversity necessitates a comprehensive help of modern man, at all levels of operation, in order to preserve and certainly enrich the existing biodiversity. To protect the numerous and very rare species numerous legal regulations, primarily the law on nature protection, must be introduced and strictly observed. The organic production system preserves not only local but also global biodiversity. According to all recent scientific research, this system of agricultural production increases not only the number of different types of organisms, but also their overall growth, with slight variations among different taxonomic groups.

Importance of Using Compost and Bacterial Biofuels in the Organic Production of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants

“…Organic production conserves and improves biodiversity, protects the environment, increases soil fertility by applying the highest standards in order to protect plant and animal health (Veličković et al, 2016).…”

The benefits of organic production of medicinal and aromatic plants in intercropping system

“…This fact indicates the necessity to alter the production methods used so far in order to achieve the sustainability of agricultural systems and provide the production of sufficient amounts of food in the future (Subić et al, 2010;Golijan and Veličković, 2015). Due to information on risks to human health and the need to conserve the environment (Veličković et al, 2016), organic production, as well as the market and demand for organic products have been permanently increasing, and therefore areas under this production are enlarging on a daily basis (Golijan and Popović, 2016;Golijan, 2016a). Considering the consequences of poorly managed agrarian policy during the transition period, Serbia, despite environmental degradation, still has a very significant potential for healthy food production and the entire sector of organic production in all agricultural macroregions (Cvetković et al, 2000), which is contributed by the fact that over 80% of the soil remains unpolluted (Popović et al, 2017).…”

Organic Seed Production in the Republic of Serbia

“…The excessive use of chemicals in agricultural production may result in numerous disturbances of the biological equilibrium of an agroecosystem, and even of the entire ecosystem (Veliĉković et al, 2016). Organic agriculture is an agricultural production alternative, i.e.…”

“…Organic food and beverage sales reached a global level of 81.6 billion Euros in 2015 (Gillian and Dimitrijevic, 2018). Numerous researchers have argued that the nutritional value of organic foods is higher compared to foods produced in conventional systems, which is still characterized by many inconsistencies requiring further research (Winter and Davis, 2006;Golijan and Veliĉković, 2015;Golijan and Kostić, 2016;Golijan et al, 2018aGolijan et al, , 2018b.…”