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Organic agriculture and undernourishment in developing countries: main potentials and challenges
Sanne Schoonbeek1, Hossein Azadi, Hossein Mahmoudi
1Faculty of Geosciences, University of Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition
|June 18, 2013
Summary
Organic agriculture offers benefits but faces challenges in combating undernourishment in developing nations. A gradual, risk-assessed transition is recommended for long-term food security and safety.
Area of Science:
- Agricultural Science
- Development Studies
- Nutrition
Background:
- Organic agriculture's advantages are well-documented, but its role in addressing undernourishment in developing countries requires further examination.
- Undernourishment is a complex issue encompassing both food security and food safety, with differing policy priorities between developed and developing nations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the potentials and challenges of organic agriculture in developing countries concerning undernourishment.
- To analyze organic farming's capacity to enhance food security and safety in alignment with developing countries' food policy priorities.
Main Methods:
- Literature review focusing on organic agriculture, undernourishment, food security, and food safety.
- Comparative analysis of organic, conventional, and biotechnological farming approaches regarding yields and policy implications.
Main Results:
- Conventional and biotechnological methods currently yield more than organic agriculture.
- Organic agriculture presents long-term potential for improving food security, but conventional methods remain essential for immediate hunger relief.
Conclusions:
- Developing countries need diverse farming approaches; a gradual, risk-assessed transition to organic farming is advisable for the long term.
- Policy decisions regarding agricultural transitions must consider crop-specific and region-specific risk assessments.
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