Research Publications

Increasing efficiency in livestock production and reducing the share of animal products in human consumption are two strategies to curb the adverse environmental impacts of the livestock sector. Here, we explore the room for sustainable livestock production by modelling the impacts and constraints of a third strategy in which livestock feed components that compete with direct human food crop production are reduced. 

Over 40 years of data on invertebrate abundance in cereals, cropping patterns, pesticide use and weather in the Sussex Study area gave us the opportunity to investigate how invertebrate abundance changed in relation to changes in farming and climate.

How the organic food system supports sustainable diets and translates these into practice

Abstract Current regulations for organic pig and poultry production systems permit feed ingredients of non-organic origin, primarily due to concerns that a 100 % organic diet would be unable to meet the demand for the essential amino acids lysine and methionine. 100 % organic diets for monogastrics will become compulsory in the EU from 1st January 2015, and so there is an urgent need to develop economically profitable feeding strategies based on organic feed across Europe. Feeding trials carried out with Gloucester old spot pigs in the UK found that there was no significant difference in the weight gains across the diets until the last week of the trial when there a significant difference in weight increase for the male pigs on the bean diet. This suggests that a 100 % organic diet using peas or beans can provide an acceptable alternative to a soyabased diet.

This paper provides more evidence for the biodiversity benefits of organic farming using a meta-analysis of 94 studies

Sustainability of a small-scale organic vegetable supply system

Organic policy study published

What is plant health? ORC-led publication explains