Ton Baars

Organic food quality: a framework for concept, definition and evaluation from the European perspective.

Consumers buy organic food because they believe in the high quality of the product. Furthermore, the EU legal regulatory framework for organic food and farming defines high quality of the products as an important goal of production. A major challenge is the need to define food quality concepts and methods for determination. A background is described which allows embedding of the quality definitions as well as evaluation methods into a conceptual framework connected to the vision and mission of organic agriculture and food production. Organic food quality is defined through specific aspects and criteria. For evaluation each criterion has to be described by indicators. The determination of indicators should be through parameters, where parameters are described by methods. Conversely, the conceptual framework is described according to underlying principles and starting definitions are given, but further work has do be done on the detailed scientific description of the indicators. Furthermore, parameters have to be defined for the evaluation of suitability of these indicators for organic food production.

The value of ‘naturalness’ in organic agriculture

Producers, traders and consumers of organic food regularly use the concept of the naturalnatural to characteri ze organic agriculture or organic food. Critics sometimes argue that such use lacks any rational (scientific) basis and only refers to sentiment. We carried out research to (1) better understand the content and the use of the concepts of nature and the natural in organic agriculture, (2) to reconstruct the value basis underlying the use of the concept of the natural in organic agriculture, and (3) to draw implications for agricultural practice and policy. A literature study and the authors’ own experience were used to produce a discussion document with explicit statements about the meaning of natural in the different areas of organic agriculture. These statements were validated by means of qualitative interviews with stakeholders. The concept of nature or the natural appeared to be value-laden. The value basis is a normative reconstruction that cannot just be derived from the use of the word natural by organic stakeholders. For this reconstructed concept the word naturalness is used. Naturalness thus becomes an ethical value for organic agriculture, an inspirational guide for organic stakeholders. The value of naturalness refers to a basic respect for the intrinsic value of nature, i.e., the value nature has, independent of the benefits it may have for humans. This manifests itself in three ways: (1) in the use of natural substances, (2) in respecting the self-regulation of living organisms and ecosystems, and (3) in respecting the characteristic (species-specific) nature of living organisms. If organic stakeholders limit themselves to using natural substances it is called the no-chemicals approach. If they also respect the self-organization of living organisms the authors call it the agro-ecological approach. If also the normative element of naturalness is included, it is called the integrity approach.

Comparison of Organic and Conventional Raw Milk Quality in The Netherlands

ABSTRACT Organic production methods have in the past been shown to have benefits for the environment, biodiversity, soil quality, animal welfare and reduced pesticide residues. In addition to these qualities they may also contribute directly to human health. In an exploratory study, raw (bulk) cows milk from five organic and five neighbouring conventional farms were compared at the end of the winter housing period. Farm management clearly differed; e.g. organic cows ate less concentrates and forage maize, and more silage of grass clover and hay. The levels of CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) and omega 3 fatty acids were significantly higher in the organic milk. No clear difference in taste was observed: the organic milk was generally considered creamier and tended to taste more of hay and grass than conventional milk. An indication of the health status of the cows was obtained by immunological research. In the organic milk the lymphocyte rest value tended to be lower and after stimulation the cells from organic milk had a higher stimulation index than those in conventional milk. In addition to the more conventional milk analysis two experimental holistic methods were used as an indicator of milk quality: biophoton emission and biocrystallization. These methods showed that organic milk was systematically more ‘balanced’: it had a more ‘ordered structure’ and showed better ‘integration and coordination’. From this pilot study it can be concluded that overall the organic milk scored better than the conventional milk for both the conventional and holistic measures. Whether these results have an impact on human health needs to be explored in other studies.

Experimental improvement of cow milk fatty acid composition in organic winter diets.

BACKGROUND Organic milk is seen as more healthy in terms of its fatty acid (FA) profile. In three on-farm crossover trials with 10-12 cows in each group, different forages were compared for their potential to improve the FA composition. Different hay qualities (hay of pasture vs. hay of leys), additional energy sources (fodder beets vs. wheat) and roughage qualities (hay of pasture vs. grass silage) were compared for their effect on the FA composition of the milk. RESULTS Rumenic acid (CLA cis-9, trans-11) and α-linolenic acid (ALA) were selected as principal markers to evaluate effects. The overall CLA cis-9, trans-11 was low (3.6-6.3 g kg⁻¹ fat), whereas ALA levels were intermediate (6.8-9.4 g kg⁻¹ fat). Differences between the forages were explained by the fat metabolism of the ruminants. CONCLUSION Organic winter milk is low in several desirable FAs. Diets rich in mature fodder and sugar were a poor choice for an improved FA composition.

Comparison of different applications of automatic herd control systems on dairy farms - a review: Automatic herd control systems on dairy farms

Recent years have seen the rapid development of different devices which can be helpful in the daily work of livestock farmers. The growing size of livestock herds has led farmers to lose individual contact with their animals, while behavioral studies show that breeders can effectively and precisely monitor a herd of up to 100 cows. This was the main motivation for this study, which aims to identify and test various electronic devices which provide useful herd management data, including estrus detection, individual activity and body temperature measurement, monitoring rumen pH levels, milk quality and content as well as milk temperature and somatic cell count measurements. Some devices can detect the metabolic status of animals with a reasonable level of precision. Contemporary animal farms are offered a large number of systems for monitoring the behavior of the animals in the herd and helping to identify those that are intended for insemination or are too active or excessively apathetic. Monitoring devices support herd management and help to reduce costs through the early detection of animal diseases and nutritional problems. This review aims to compile and summarize the information currently available on the use of automatic herd control systems on dairy farms, as well as to discuss the interpretation of the results, providing a useful diagnostic tool in nutritional evaluations of dairy herds.