Wheat quality in organic and conventional farming: results of a 21 year field experiment

Abstract

Consumers have become more aware of healthy and safe food produced with low environmental impact. Organic agriculture is of particular interest in this respect, as manifested by 5.768 million hectares managed pursuant to Council Regulation (EEC) 2092/91 in Europe. However, there can be a considerable risk that the avoidance of chemical inputs in organic farming will result in poor food quality. Here the results of a study on the quality of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) grown in a 21 year agrosystem comparison between organic and conventional farming in central Europe are reported. Wheat was grown in a ley (grass/clover) rotation. The 71% lower addition of plant-available nitrogen and the reduced input of other means of production to the organic field plots led to 14% lower wheat yields. However, nutritional value (protein content, amino acid composition and mineral and trace element contents) and baking quality were not affected by the farming systems. Despite exclusion of fungicides from the organic production systems, the quantities of mycotoxins detected in wheat grains were low in all systems and did not differ. In food preference tests, as an integrative method, rats significantly preferred organically over conventionally produced wheat. The findings indicate that high wheat quality in organic farming is achievable by lower inputs, thereby safeguarding natural resources.

Comparison of quality parameters of wheat varieties with different breeding origin under organic and low-input conventional conditions

“…These properties also resulted in the separation of the O and LI sites on the discriminant analysis figure (Figure 1). At the same time, no difference was found either in the protein content or in the gluten content under the two management systems, similarly to the findings of Mäder et al (2007), but differences were observed in the quality traits of the gluten and in their standard deviation.…”

“…In contrast, Mäder et al (2007) found no difference either in the protein content or in the amino acid composition, mineral content and baking quality of varieties grown under organic or high-input conventional farming systems. No differences were observed for the flavour, aroma or colour attributes of conventional and organic bread, but organic bread was denser in texture with smaller air cells in the crumb (Annett et al 7 2007, Kihlberg et al 2006).…”

Reaction of winter spelt cultivars to reduced tillage system and chemical plant protection

“…The existing research on this topic indicates that chemical crop protection does not negatively affect the quality of yields (Mäder et al, 2007;Zorb et al, 2009). The deterioration in some quality parameters is associated with the simultaneous impact of climate and soil conditions and a negative response of wheat cultivars to the chemical applied (Kieloch, Sumisławska, 2012).…”

The influence of crop rotation on the mineral nutrient content of organic vs. conventionally produced wheat grain: Preliminary results from a long-term field study

“…Previously reported nutritional differences between organic and conventionally grown food include increases in micronutrient and vitamin content and highquality N (Worthington et al 2001;Bourn and Prescott 2002;Williams 2002;Ryan et al 2004;Annett et al 2007) whereas others have found little or no differences (Zo¨rb et al 2006;Ma¨der et al 2007). However, there are very few well-controlled studies that make valid comparisons between the nutritional qualities of organic vs. conventionally produced food (Magkos et al 2003).…”