Risk and risk management in organic agriculture: Views of organic farmers

Hanson, James A.; Dismukes, Robert; Chambers, William; Greene, Catherine; Kremen, Amy

doi:10.1079/raf200482

Cited by 16 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…Economic conditions and farm programs and policies are two social factors that may positively or negatively impact farmers' ability to adapt to drought. A recent study of organic farmers' views of risk management highlighted an ambivalent relationship between organic producers and federal crop insurance 26 . More research is needed to better understand the adaptive potential of farmers to drought in the context of real-world settings.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Farmer perceptions of sustainable agriculture practices and drought risk reduction in Nebraska, USA

Knutson

Haigh

Hayes

et al. 2011

Renew. Agric. Food Syst.

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Social factors, such as farming methods, have an impact on farm vulnerability to drought, but have received little research or policy attention. Some researchers and advocates have argued that sustainable agriculture systems are less vulnerable to climate risk than conventional systems because sustainable agriculture requires producers to have skills promoting adaptability. In this paper, we investigate producers' perceptions on the use of sustainable agriculture in reducing drought risk, and what they believe would help them better adapt to drought. We surveyed and interviewed farmer members of two sustainable agriculture organizations in Nebraska, USA, during a multi-year drought period from 1999 to 2007. Producers reported implementing a range of practices, such as organic soil building techniques, reduced tillage, targeted crop selection and diversification of crop and livestock production systems, to reduce their drought vulnerability. Although some practices were implemented specifically to reduce drought risk, producers felt that the practices they implemented as part of their normal operation were largely responsible for reducing their risk. Respondents held mixed views on the effects of insurance and farm programs on their drought management decisions. Finally, producers indicated that their ability to adapt to drought is limited by a number of barriers, especially a lack of capital and the need to respond to markets and maximize production to maintain cash flows.

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Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Farmer perceptions of sustainable agriculture practices and drought risk reduction in Nebraska, USA

Knutson

Haigh

Hayes

et al. 2011

Renew. Agric. Food Syst.

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“…Organic farming methods, as defined by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Organic Program (NOP), apply products using health-friendly methods that preserve the environment and minimize the use of synthetic materials including synthetic pesticides and antibiotics [2,3]. However, health concerns for organic farmers are also evident in the literature as they are exposed to toxic organic materials and pesticides derived from natural sources [4][5][6][7][8].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Neurological and mental health outcomes among conventional and organic farmers in Indiana, USA

Khan¹,

Baidya²,

Aryal³

et al. 2018

Ann Agric Environ Med.

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Introduction. Every farming method, whether conventional or organic, has been associated with some sort of risky behaviors leading to health issues among farmers. Substantial evidence is not available in the literature to determine whether the magnitudes of health outcomes vary between conventional and organic farmers. The study investigated whether selfreported neurological and mental health symptoms differ between conventional and organic farmers living in Indiana, USA. Materials and method. A self-reported questionnaire survey collected information from 200 conventional and 157 organic farmers of Indiana on demographic characteristics, depression and neurological symptoms. Statistical analyses were conducted to observe the differences in self-reported symptoms by groups of farmers. Results. It was observed that the conventional farmers had significantly higher age-adjusted mean neurological symptom score (p<0.01) than the organic farmers. Regression models revealed positive and significant associations of conventional farming with total (β =1.34; p=0.02), sensory (β =0.83; p=0.001) and behavioural (β =0.09; p=0.03) symptoms after accounting for age, income, education and years in farming. Positive but non-significant associations were also observed in conventional farmers with cognitive and motor symptoms, and with all subscales of depression symptoms in the adjusted models. Conclusion. The findings obtained suggest the importance of a larger study to further explain the difference in mental and neurological health effects in these two categories of farmers.

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“…Organic diets should be formulated with the organic ingredients without synthetic forms of amino acids and GMO ingredients; thus, it is crucial to formulate feed with lower quantity of soybean, which has a high risk of GMO contamination (Hanson et al, 2004), and use genotypes having lower protein and amino acids requirements (Leclercq et al, 1993;Pesti et al, 1994;Rosa et al, 2001). Slow-growing birds meet such request and are recommended for the better adaptation to the outdoor environment and to a longer rearing period (Castellini et al, 2002;Fanatico et al, 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Faba BeanVicia FabaVar.Minor) Inclusion in Starter and Growing Diet on Performance, Carcass and Meat Characteristics of Organic Slow-Growing Chickens

Bosco

Ruggeri

Mattioli

et al. 2013

Italian Journal of Animal Science

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This paper assesses the effect of faba bean (Vicia Faba minor), in partial substitution of soybean, on productive performance, carcass and meat traits of slow-growing chickens readed under the organic method. Faba bean was used in both starter (1-21 d) and growing/finisher diets (22-120 d). One thousand birds were fed two different diets containing respectively, soybean or faba bean as the main protein source for the entire rearing period. The birds of each group were slaughtered at 120 d of age. The productive performance of group F was the worst, with a higher mortality rate, indicating that faba bean diets are not able to cover the nutritional requirements of birds mainly in the first rearing period. The main carcass and meat qualitative traits, were not affected by the treatment, whereas minor modification regards saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids.

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Risk and risk management in organic agriculture: Views of organic farmers

Cited by 16 publications

References 4 publications

Farmer perceptions of sustainable agriculture practices and drought risk reduction in Nebraska, USA

Farmer perceptions of sustainable agriculture practices and drought risk reduction in Nebraska, USA

Neurological and mental health outcomes among conventional and organic farmers in Indiana, USA

Effect of Faba BeanVicia FabaVar.Minor) Inclusion in Starter and Growing Diet on Performance, Carcass and Meat Characteristics of Organic Slow-Growing Chickens

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