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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Ames, Iowa » National Laboratory for Agriculture and The Environment » Agroecosystems Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #319911
Title: Organic farming, soil health, and food quality: considering possible links

Author
item REEVE, J - Utah State University
item HOAGLAND, L - Purdue University
item VILLALBA, J - Utah State University
item CARR, P - North Dakota State University
item ATUCHA, A - University Of Wisconsin
item Cambardella, Cynthia
item DAVIS, D - University Of Texas
item DELATE, KATHLEEN - Iowa State University

Submitted to: Advances in Agronomy
Publication Type: Review Article
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/26/2015
Publication Date: 6/4/2016
Citation: Reeve, J., Hoagland, L., Villalba, J., Carr, P., Atucha, A., Cambardella, C.A., Davis, D.R., Delate, K. 2016. Organic farming, soil health, and food quality: considering possible links. Advances in Agronomy. 137:319-367. doi: 10.1016/bs.agron.2015.12.003.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: That the health of soils, plants, animals and people are linked is an ancient idea that still resonates. It is well known that soil nutrient deficiencies and toxicities can adversely impact plant and animal health. Growing evidence also supports the idea of positive links between farm management, soil health, and plant health. The extent to which soil health, plant health, and food crop nutritional quality directly influence human health is less understood, however. Much of the research in this area has focused on comparing organic with conventional farming systems. Organic farming systems utilize carbon based amendments, diverse crop rotations, and cover crops to build soil fertility. These practices increase biologically available forms of soil organic matter and increase beneficial soil microbe and invertebrate activities, thereby improving soil physical properties, reducing disease potential, and increasing plant health. To date, comparisons of nutrient content between organic and conventional foods have been inconsistent. But recent evidence suggests that organically grown fruits and vegetables contain higher levels of health promoting phytochemicals, with this effect possibly linked to greater plant stress, rhizosphere microbial communities, and/or lower available nitrogen. But the overlap in management practices between farming systems makes broad generalizations difficult, and these issues need to be considered when designing studies to determine how soil health impacts food. Moreover, environmental and crop species and/or cultivar effects may be stronger than those caused by management. The goal of this paper is to provide a concise summary of the known factors influencing soil and plant health and the possible links with food-crop quality and human health, and to suggest a path for future research. Though this paper draws primarily from research on organic farming, determining key management practices associated with enhanced soil, plant and human health remains an important goal for all sustainable food production systems.