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

• Published in: Journal of the science of food and agriculture Vol. 87; no. 10; pp. 1826 - 1835
• Main Authors: Mäder, P, Hahn, D, Dubois, D, Gunst, L, Alföldi, T, Bergmann, H, Oehme, M, Amadò, R, Schneider, H, Graf, U
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chichester, UK John Wiley & Sons, Ltd 15.08.2007; Wiley
• Subjects: agrochemicals; amino acid composition; animal models; baking quality; Biological and medical sciences; Cereal and baking product industries; conventional farming; crop quality; crop rotation; farming systems; fertilizer rates; field experimentation; food acceptability; Food industries; food preference tests; food quality; Food toxicology; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; long term experiments; mineral content; mycotoxins; nitrogen fertilizers; nutritive value; organic farming; organic production; protein content; rats; trace elements; Triticum aestivum; wheat; wheat constituents; wheat quality; Switzerland; Europe; mycotoxins; food preference tests; Mycotoxin; conventional farming; Field experiment; Toxin; Preference; Quality; Cereal; wheat constituents; wheat quality; Wheat; organic farming; Constituent; Food; Farming
• ISSN: 0022-5142; 1097-0010
• DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.2866

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.