<p>In order to study the <i>effect of production systems</i> aimed at sustainability<i> on product quality</i> and of sensory and non-sensory factors on product acceptance – the effect of farming system, year, milling and baking techniques on the sensory qualities of wheat bread as a model product was investigated using a descriptive test, and the effect of information and values on liking of bread using consumer tests.</p><p>Whole wheat and white breads were baked with wheat grown in six lots in established conventional and organic farming systems in field trails, in two subsequent years for the white bread.</p><p><i>Milling technique</i> influenced flours’ rheology and had greater impact on the sensory qualities of whole wheat bread and on the slice area than did <i>farming system</i> and <i>baking technique</i>. Bread baked with roller-milled wheat was characterized by sweetness, juiciness, compactness and smaller slice area than bread baked with stone-milled wheat, which was characterized by saltiness, deformity and roasted cereals.</p><p>The <i>effect of year </i>on the white bread was greater than the effect of <i>farming system </i>or <i>recipe modification</i>. Bread baked with wheat harvested in 1999 had significantly lower intensities of crumb attributes such as smoothness, juiciness and elasticity, but higher rancid flavour, springiness, compressibility, mastication resistance than bread baked with wheat harvested in 2000. Bread baked with conventional flour had significantly higher juiciness and elasticity than organic bread.</p><p>Image analysis did not show differences in slice area between bread baked with conventionally and organically grown wheat harvested in 1999 compared with 2000. <i>Information</i> affected liking in relation to the type of provided information. Information on organic origin enhanced most liking of bread, particularly for the less liked samples and frequent consumers of organic food. Significantly different <i>values</i> and different specific liking of breads were found among consumer segments. Results linked values and age with “taste”.</p>

In order to study the effect of production systems aimed at sustainability on product quality and of sensory and non-sensory factors on product acceptance – the effect of farming system, year, milling and baking techniques on the sensory qualities of wheat bread as a model product was investigated using a descriptive test, and the effect of information and values on liking of bread using consumer tests. Whole wheat and white breads were baked with wheat grown in six lots in established conventional and organic farming systems in field trails, in two subsequent years for the white bread. Milling technique influenced flours’ rheology and had greater impact on the sensory qualities of whole wheat bread and on the slice area than did farming system and baking technique. Bread baked with roller-milled wheat was characterized by sweetness, juiciness, compactness and smaller slice area than bread baked with stone-milled wheat, which was characterized by saltiness, deformity and roasted cereals. The effect of year on the white bread was greater than the effect of farming system or recipe modification. Bread baked with wheat harvested in 1999 had significantly lower intensities of crumb attributes such as smoothness, juiciness and elasticity, but higher rancid flavour, springiness, compressibility, mastication resistance than bread baked with wheat harvested in 2000. Bread baked with conventional flour had significantly higher juiciness and elasticity than organic bread. Image analysis did not show differences in slice area between bread baked with conventionally and organically grown wheat harvested in 1999 compared with 2000. Information affected liking in relation to the type of provided information. Information on organic origin enhanced most liking of bread, particularly for the less liked samples and frequent consumers of organic food. Significantly different values and different specific liking of breads were found among consumer segments. Results linked values and age with “taste”.

Organic agriculture is an important and growing sector of U.S. and world food production. Consumers are increasingly aware of and interested in the production practices and impacts associated with agriculture and as such, are showing a preference for sustainably produced, raised, and harvested foods. In order to continue to meet the growing demand for organic produce, organic growers need cultivars that are optimally adapted to organic and low input conditions. Quality seed is the foundation of any functional and stable farming system. Unfortunately the lack of organically bred and produced seed is hindering the continued growth and success of organic farming. Meeting the needs of the organic sector has been a challenge for the seed industry; it is an industry that often doesn't understand the specific and unique requirements associated with the diversity of environmental and market demands of organic systems. However, organic farmers and the organic food systems they supply, require a robust organic seed system that is appropriately adapted to regional agronomic challenges and market needs, meets standards and regulations, and encompasses the social and ecological values of organic agriculture. One plausible approach to meeting the cultivar and seed needs of organic and low input production systems is through the use of participatory plant breeding (PPB). PPB is a collaborative approach for identifying and developing genetically diverse plant material and varieties involving partnerships among formal sector breeders and researchers, farmers, extension agents, educators, and end users. Participatory plant breeding fundamentally changes the way that formal breeding programs and farmers manage germplasm and plant genetic resources. Typically, formal breeding programs restrict access to germplasm and breeding materials and only supply farmers with finished varieties. In PPB, farmers are involved in the early stages of creation and evaluation of germplasm and breeding material, and stay engaged with the breeding process until new varieties are created. PPB is an excellent model for breeding specifically for organic systems because organic systems in developed countries have many similarities to low-input agricultural systems in the developing world. Some of these parallels include heterogeneous growing environments, a wide range of end uses and marketing strategies, lack of suitably adapted and/or derived varieties, lack of attention from the formal seed sector, and a reduced reliance on synthetic inputs (compared to conventional systems). Breeding for organic systems is a relatively young field and breeders in the formal sector do not have a good handle on what traits are important for robust production under organic conditions. Thus the opportunity to meld farmers' experience and knowledge with breeders' expertise is an effective way to breed for organic production systems. The purpose of this project was to investigate and explore the opportunities and challenges of organic plant breeding using participatory research methods. This research had three goals: 1) to develop an open pollinated broccoli with contemporary quality traits for organic production systems using participatory strategies; 2) to compare broccoli selections made by formally trained plant breeders and farmer breeders; and 3) to capture the stories and experiences of the formal breeders and farmer breeders involved with this broccoli material in order to contribute to the growing wealth of knowledge on collaborative and organic breeding work. The Oregon State University Vegetable Breeding Program made significant progress towards decreasing the variability of the broccoli project material through three successive years of modified half-sibling selections. Evaluations and selections were based more strongly on quality traits rather than soley on production traits such as yield. Although progress was incremental and statistically verified in only three out of the fifteen quality traits, we observed trends in the data indicating progress towards an increasingly uniform, stable, and reliable open pollinated broccoli with specific adaptation for organic production systems. There were very few differences between broccoli materials developed by formally trained plant breeders and farmer breeders. This was especially true for the three cultivars developed in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) (one in Washington and two in Oregon). The 'East Coast' population, which had been collaboratively selected by formal and farmer breeders in New York, expressed significantly distinct differences from the PNW materials. When the farmer breeder and formal breeder materials were pooled together and compared to pooled check cultivars they expressed significant differences for nearly all traits across all years. This demonstrated that all of the collaboratively developed open pollinated materials are distinctly different from the F1 hybrids currently available. Our work has demonstrated a few of the myriad of positive outcomes achievable with the use of participatory plant breeding for organic production systems. The participatory nature of this project resulted in increased confidence and feelings of empowerment for all involved. Both farmers and breeders felt their involvement was socially beneficial and widened their networking and seed community circles. The farmer-bred cultivar 'Solstice' is now available as a result of Jonathan Spero's work, and a cultivar tentatively named 'Benton' is about to be released for sale through Oregon State University. Our results agree with previous study findings that formal and farmer breeder selections are often not distinctly different; thus providing evidence for continuing to support the involvement and education of farmers in plant breeding, especially in reference to organic production systems. This study demonstrates the potential of collaboratively developed and farmer-bred cultivars to become viable and vibrant open pollinated alternatives to the current open pollinated cultivars on the market today. / Graduation date: 2013

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This thesis examines differences between organic and conventional farm and operators' characteristics, and identifies which characteristics explain whether a farm is organic or conventional. The data comes from the 2001 Canadian Census of Agriculture, which makes this study the first that is national in scope and includes detailed analysis of the differences between organic and conventional agriculture using a large sample size. / Farms were divided into three groups: conventional, primarily organic, and mixed production (some organic production). Parametric and nonparametric tests were used to analyze farm and operator characteristics. Logistic regression was used to determine which variables explain whether a farm is organic, conventional or mixed. Results indicate that organic farmers are more likely to be younger, female, work less off farm and more on farm, when compared to conventional. Organic farms tend to be smaller, more profitable, more diversified, and have a higher dependency on hired labour. There were no differences in capital intensity. Mixed farms manifested the same patterns as organic when compared to conventional.

This thesis examines the ideas, assumptions, and activities of the predecessors and later advocates of the American organic farming movement. The central argument is that organic practitioners and sympathizers have shared a concern for the "balance of nature" and for man's roIe in that natural balance. 1 also argue that in the United States this natural ideal has been linked to the "myth of the garden", a vision of an agrarian nation and of the independent family farm which has shaped recurrent American rural reform movements. l contend that although they express apparently diverse goals -- for spiritual renewal, for political "revolution" , for personal self-sufficiency, and for a "new science" -- advocates share an underlying sense of their common crusade. Fundamental to this crusade is the value they place on "Nature", on the farmer's experience, and on rural revival. Thus, we can understand their diverse visions as expressions of a common cast of mind. / Cette thèse traite des fondements, des idées ainsi que des activités des précurseurs et des nouveaux partisans du mouvement américain de "l'agriculture biologique". Elle met en évidence le fait que ceux qui pratiquent cette forme d'agriculture et leurs sympathisants sont préoccupés par "l'équilibre de la nature" et par le rôle que l'homme peut y jouer. Elle démontre également qu'aux Etats-Unis, cet idéal de la nature a été lié au "mythe du jardin", c'est-à-dire à cette vision d'une nation agraire et d'une ferme familial indépendante, notions qui ont fortement marqué les mouvements de réforme rurale en Amérique. Malgré les objectifs apparemment divergents qu'ils épousent, lesquels varient du désir d'un renouveau spirituel, de la poursuite d'une révolution politique, de la recherche de l'auto-suffisance à la constitution d'une nouvelle science, les partisans se trouvent unis par un même esprit de croisade. A la base de cette cause se trouvent les valeurs de la nature, l'expérience personnelle des agriculteurs et le renouveau rural. Ainsi peut-on entrevoir, parmi ces visions diverses, l'expression d'une attitude commune. fr

The soils used by the East Coast Organic Producers Trust (ECOPT; the grower group that this study is targeted towards) have exceptionally low soil Olsen P concentrations (ca. 6 mg/L). These and other limitations (e.g. poor weed and pest and disease control) result in many ECOPT growers being unable to produce economic yields on anything other than small scale gardens. Fertilisers and manures are seldom used by these growers, which exacerbates the problem. Thus, the object of this research was to provide information to ECOPT on which fertilisers and application strategies would provide the best returns on their phosphorus (P) fertiliser investment. The experimental work was carried out in two parts. A laboratory study tested a range of phosphate rock (PR) based fertilisers and application rates; Ben Guerir reactive phosphate rock (RPR; 67, 133, 267, 533 and 1,333 mg P/kg soil), BioPhos and BioSuper (267 and 1,333 mg P/kg soil) and a no fertiliser Control. Soil fertiliser mixtures were incubated for 155 days and periodic measurements of PR dissolution, soil pH and Bic-P (analogous to Olsen P but expressed in µg/g) were undertaken. The field study used fewer application rates and two application methods; banded and broadcast. Broadcast plots were applied at 678 mg P/kg soil (488 kg P/ha); banded RPR was applied at 236, 678 and 1475 mg P/kg soil (40, 115 and 250 kg P/ha respectively) and banded BioPhos and BioSuper at 678 mg P/kg soil (115 kg P/ha). A Control was also included. Fertilisers were applied in October 2004 and changes in soil pH and Bic-P were measured in the broadcast plots only over a 344 day period. Potato (Solanum tuberosum L. cv. Desiree) was the test crop. Regression analysis was used to generate exponential equations to describe the changes in Bic-P over time (∆Bic-P). Differences between fertilisers in the amount of P dissolved and pH fluxes were used to explain the differences in ∆Bic-P. BioSuper dissolved quicker and generated greater ∆Bic-P than RPR and BioPhos, which were similar. Higher application rates produced greater increases in Bic-P than lower rates but decreased the % of P applied that dissolved. The increase in Bic-P over time from fertiliser application was much slower in the field compared with the laboratory. This was put down to differences in experimental conditions; mainly soil pH and soil aggregate surface area. Potato tuber yield (mean = 35 t/ha) did not respond to any of the fertiliser treatments despite a significant increase in P concentration of the shoots mid-way through the season in all broadcast treatments (shoot P concentration was not analysed in the banded plots). Water and N availability were the main limiting factors in this season as the crop was not irrigated and soil N supply was insufficient to produce a full canopy. Phosphorus response curves generated using the fertiliser response model PARJIB (Reid, 2002), and an economic analysis, indicated that for RPR and BioPhos the optimum economic application rate was 200 kg P/ha and for BioSuper it was 100 kg P/ha (applied every third and second year respectively).

This thesis consider the use of organic products in spa facilities in South Bohemian Region and assess a regional supply of organic food. Results were obtained through primary and secondary data. Secondary data was provided by the study of literature and the subsequent creation of a literature review. Primary data were obtained in a questionnaire survey and structured interviews.