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  • From: Food News <foodnews@ca.inter.net>(Redirected by "Tradingpost" <tradingpost@gilanet.com>)
  • To: livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [Livingontheland] EU Project Highlights Nutritional Value of Organic Production Systems
  • Date: Sun, 18 Jul 2004 12:28:22 -0400

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Policy Gap: The European Union is funding a major project to learn about how
different production systems effect the quality and safety of food. This
project brings our attention to a significant gap in nutrition policy: seldom
considering food security from a consumer's perspective, the added
nutritional value of organic food is often neglected. Foodnews invites reader
responses on this issue.
Improving quality and safety and reduction of costs in the European organic
and low input supply chain
June 15 2004
The European Union is funding a new 18M Euro Integrated Project
'QualityLowInputFood' that aims to improve quality, ensure safety and improve
productivity along the European organic and other "low input" food supply
chains (see project website: www.qlif.org for details).


The Integrated project will involve thirty-one research institutions,
industrial companies and universities (listed below) throughout Europe and
beyond. , with a total budget of 18 million Euro. Five of the eight
industrial partners are Small to Medium size Enterprises and all eight are
involved in the production, processing or quality assurance of organic food.
Thus, this Integrated Project integrates the critical mass of activities and
resources needed to achieve ambitious scientific and technological objectives.

The research will encompass the whole food chain from fork to farm for
protected crops (tomato), field vegetables (lettuce, onion, potato, carrot,
cabbage), fruit (apple), cereal (wheat), pork, dairy and poultry. It will
measure consumer attitudes and expectations, and will develop new
technologies to improve nutritional, sensory, microbiological and
toxicological quality/safety of organic foods. All the project's innovations
will be assessed for their socio-economic, environmental and sustainability
impacts.


The research will provide meaningful information that is currently lacking on
the extent to which differences in production systems affect nutritional
value, taste and safety of food. The project is expected to make a
significant impact on increasing the competitiveness of the organic industry
to the benefit of the European consumers and organic farmers.

Major results from the integrated project and other completed or ongoing
European research projects will be reported at the "Organic Farming, Food
Quality and Human Health Congress" which will be held between the 6th and 9th
of January 2005 at Newcastle University. The conference is aimed at farmers,
processors, traders/retailers, consumer organisations and other stakeholders
in the food supply chain (see www.qlif.org for details).


Low input for high returns
European citizens want agriculture to provide tasty, safe, affordable and
nutritious food without damaging the environment. "Low input" farming
minimises or completely avoids the use of synthetic pesticides and
fertilisers. The best known low input system is organic farming, which is one
of the most dynamic sectors of agriculture in Europe, but also faces
substantial challenges to meet consumers' demands for safe, high quality,
affordable organic food. The European Commission's Sixth Framework Programme
(FP6) has allocated 685 million Euro for research and development in the area
of Food Quality and Safety, such as "safer and environmentally friendly
production methods and technologies and healthier foodstuffs", "impact of
food on health"; and "traceability processes all along the production chain".
The project 'QualityLowInputFood' brings together European expertise in an 18
million Euro Integrated Project to improve quality, ensure safety and reduce
cost along the European organic and "low input" food supply chains.


Start with the Consumer .

One of the first investigations will ask consumers what they want from low
input foods, and measure what they actually buy, to determine what producers
need to do to satisfy consumer demand. Other researchers will compare
"low-input" and conventional products for qualities such as nutritional
value, taste, shelf life, and processing characteristics, and for risks
related to reduced fertility, pathogens and toxins from fungi. The aim here
is to understand how these benefits and hazards can be optimised and
controlled throughout the chain.


Then the Producer .

Based on this, scientists will develop novel techniques to produce better
products as cost-effectively as possible, and disseminate them to
professionals in the food industry. Focus here will be on farm-based research
in cereals, vegetables, dairy, poultry and pork production. For example,
agronomists will test different management strategies for improvements in
soil fertility, disease, weed and pest control to improve yields of high
quality, organic plant foods, while livestock experts will assess how
improved husbandry methods and feeding regimes can improve the nutritional
quality of organic milk and minimise parasites and bacterial infections in
pig and dairy production.


The project involves 31 partners, including Universities, Research Institutes
and industrial companies. Five of the eight industrial partners are Small to
Medium size Enterprises and all eight are involved in the production,
processing or quality assurance of organic food.


Each year of the project, a major congress will be held to present the
results of this and other projects on organic and "low input" agriculture to
representatives of producers, processors, retailers, consumers and other user
groups. The first major congress will take place between the 6.-9. January
2005 at Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyner, UK and has been jointly
organised with the Soil Association, one of Europe's major organic farming
organisations. In addition to first results from the integrated project major
outputs from other R&D projects funded by the EU, national governments and
industry will be presented. Details can be found on the project website
(www.qlif.org).

Partner List

1. University of Newcastle upon Tyne (Overall Co-ordinator, England, UK)

2. Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (Academic Co-ordinator,
Switzerland)

3. Danish Research Centre for Organic Farming/Danish Institute of
Agricultural Sciences (Denmark)

4. Praktijkonderzoek Veehouderij BV (Netherlands)

5. University of Kassel (Germany)

6. Campden and Chorleywood Food Research Association (England, UK)

7. University of Wales, Aberystwyth (Wales, UK)

8. Louis Bolk Institute (Netherlands)

9. Alma Matur Studiorum - Universitat di Bologna (Italy)

10. Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (France)

11. Warsaw Agricultural University (Poland)

12. University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Vienna
(Austria)

13. Universidad de Tras-os-Montes e Alto Douro (Portugal)

14. Technological Educational Institute of Crete (Crete, Greece)

15. Vysoka Skola Chemickotechnologicka v Praze, Prague (Czech Republic)

16. Bar Ilan University (Israel)

17. University of Helsinki (Finland)

18. TUBITAK-Marmara Research Centre (Turkey)

19. University of Bonn (Germany)

20. University of Basel (Switzerland)

21. Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research (Wales, UK)

22. Universitat Hohenheim (Germany)

23. Universita Politecnica della Marche (Italy)

24. Granarolo SPA (Italy)

25. Roger White and Associates (England, UK)

26. Guaber SPA (Italy)

27. Anidral SRL (Italy)

28. Gilchesters Organics (England, UK)

29. Agro Eco Consultancy B.V. (Netherlands)

30. Swiss Federal Dairy Research Station, Liebefeld (Switzerland)

31. Groupe de Recherche et d'Echanges Technologiques (France)

More information


QualityLowInputFood Website: http://www.qlif.org


Project co-ordinator: Prof. C. Leifert, University of
Newcastle, Nafferton
Farm, Stocksfield, NE43 7XD, UK.

Tel. +44-1661-830222; e-mail:
qlif@ncl.ac.uk



Academic co-ordinator: Dr Urs Niggli, Research Institute of
Organic

Agriculture (FiBL), CH-5070
Frick, CH.

Tel. +41-62-8657270; e-mail:
qlif@fibl.ch


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  • [Livingontheland] EU Project Highlights Nutritional Value of Organic Production Systems, Food News, 07/18/2004

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