Family Farming Knowledge Platform

Organic and agroecological farming: Safeguarding long-term food security

Food security has different dimensions: availability, access, stability over time, and utilisation2. In the current European context, only accessibility and stability are of concern. Food supply or availability is not at stake in the EU despite the ongoing war in Ukraine, but soaring food prices mean low-income households struggle to access it3, with access depending primarily on economic (purchase) power. While utilisation is not an issue of concern in Europe, where diets generally provide sufficient energy and essential nutrients4, stability, i.e., lasting, sustainable food security, is threatened by some intensive farming practices, which might produce higher yields in the short term but come with huge environmental and societal costs and so undermine the very bases of production as well as long-term food security. Therefore, policymakers should trigger a transition to agroecology and further develop organic farming rather than favouring the maximisation of yields at any expense. Organic farming balances yields against the protection of our climate and biodiversity, which makes it the best guarantee for long-term food security.

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Publisher: TP Organics
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Author: Maria Gernert, Mar Segarra Valenzuela & Bram Moeskops
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Organization: TP Organics
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Year: 2023
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Geographical coverage: Europe and Central Asia, European Union (European Union)
Type: Policy brief/paper
Content language: English
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