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Evidence that organic farming promotes pest control

Author

Listed:
  • Lucile Muneret

    (INRA, UMR 1065 Santé et Agroécologie du Vignoble, ISVV, Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux Sciences Agro)

  • Matthew Mitchell

    (University of British Columbia)

  • Verena Seufert

    (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT))

  • Stéphanie Aviron

    (INRA, UMR BAGAP, INRA-ESA-Agrocampus Ouest)

  • El Aziz Djoudi

    (Université de Rennes 1, UMR Ecobio, Campus de Beaulieu
    INRA, UMR IGEPP, Agrocampus Ouest, Université de Rennes 1, Université Bretagne-Loire)

  • Julien Pétillon

    (Université de Rennes 1, UMR Ecobio, Campus de Beaulieu)

  • Manuel Plantegenest

    (INRA, UMR IGEPP, Agrocampus Ouest, Université de Rennes 1, Université Bretagne-Loire)

  • Denis Thiéry

    (INRA, UMR 1065 Santé et Agroécologie du Vignoble, ISVV, Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux Sciences Agro)

  • Adrien Rusch

    (INRA, UMR 1065 Santé et Agroécologie du Vignoble, ISVV, Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux Sciences Agro)

Abstract

Ecological intensification of agro-ecosystems, based on the optimization of ecological functions such as biological pest control, to replace agrochemical inputs is a promising route to reduce the ecological footprint of agriculture while maintaining commodity production. However, the performance of organic farming, often considered as a prototype of ecological intensification, in terms of pest control remains largely unknown. Here, using two distinct meta-analyses, we demonstrate that, compared to conventional cropping systems, (i) organic farming promotes overall biological pest control potential, (ii) organic farming has higher levels of overall pest infestations but (iii) that this effect strongly depends on the pest type. Our study shows that there are lower levels of pathogen infestation, similar levels of animal pest infestation and much higher levels of weed infestation in organic than in conventional systems. This study provides evidence that organic farming can enhance pest control and suggests that organic farming offers a way to reduce the use of synthetic pesticide for the management of animal pests and pathogens without increasing their levels of infestation.

Suggested Citation

  • Lucile Muneret & Matthew Mitchell & Verena Seufert & Stéphanie Aviron & El Aziz Djoudi & Julien Pétillon & Manuel Plantegenest & Denis Thiéry & Adrien Rusch, 2018. "Evidence that organic farming promotes pest control," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 1(7), pages 361-368, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natsus:v:1:y:2018:i:7:d:10.1038_s41893-018-0102-4
    DOI: 10.1038/s41893-018-0102-4
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    Cited by:

    1. Ostandie, Noémie & Giffard, Brice & Tolle, Pauline & Ugaglia, Adeline Alonso & Thiéry, Denis & Rusch, Adrien, 2022. "Organic viticulture leads to lower trade-offs between agroecosystem goods but does not improve overall multifunctionality," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 203(C).
    2. Aguilera, Eduardo & Díaz-Gaona, Cipriano & García-Laureano, Raquel & Reyes-Palomo, Carolina & Guzmán, Gloria I. & Ortolani, Livia & Sánchez-Rodríguez, Manuel & Rodríguez-Estévez, Vicente, 2020. "Agroecology for adaptation to climate change and resource depletion in the Mediterranean region. A review," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 181(C).
    3. René Rietra & Marius Heinen & Oene Oenema, 2022. "A Review of Crop Husbandry and Soil Management Practices Using Meta-Analysis Studies: Towards Soil-Improving Cropping Systems," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(2), pages 1-31, February.
    4. Boun My, Kene & Nguyen-Van, Phu & Kim Cuong Pham, Thi & Stenger, Anne & Tiet, Tuyen & To-The, Nguyen, 2022. "Drivers of organic farming: Lab-in-the-field evidence of the role of social comparison and information nudge in networks in Vietnam," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    5. Gökhan Uzel & Serkan Gürlük & Esma Aslak & Feza Karaer, 2022. "Land use preferences considering resource economics: case of organic versus conventional wheat production in Turkey," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(12), pages 14375-14392, December.
    6. Zhen, Huayang & Qiao, Yuhui & Zhao, Haijun & Ju, Xuehai & Zanoli, Raffaele & Waqas, Muhammad Ahmed & Lun, Fei & Knudsen, Marie Trydeman, 2022. "Developing a conceptual model to quantify eco-compensation based on environmental and economic cost-benefit analysis for promoting the ecologically intensified agriculture," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    7. Lu, Chen-Fu & Cheng, Chia-Yi, 2023. "Exploring the distribution of organic farming: Findings from certified rice in Taiwan," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 212(C).
    8. Barbieri, Pietro & Starck, Thomas & Voisin, Anne-Sophie & Nesme, Thomas, 2023. "Biological nitrogen fixation of legumes crops under organic farming as driven by cropping management: A review," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 205(C).
    9. Nesar Ahmed & Shirley Thompson & Giovanni M. Turchini, 2020. "Organic aquaculture productivity, environmental sustainability, and food security: insights from organic agriculture," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 12(6), pages 1253-1267, December.
    10. Joanna Smoluk-Sikorska & Mariusz Malinowski, 2021. "An Attempt to Apply Canonical Analysis to Investigate the Dependencies between the Level of Organic Farming Development in Poland and the Chosen Environmental Determinants," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-26, December.
    11. Dilara Arslan & Kerim Çiçek & Ömer Döndüren & Lisa Ernoul, 2021. "Threat Ranking to Improve Conservation Planning: An Example from the Gediz Delta, Turkey," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-16, December.
    12. Anna Kuczuk & Katarzyna Widera, 2021. "A Greater Share of Organic Agriculture in Relation to Food Security Resulting from the Energy Demand Obtained from Food—Scenarios for Poland until 2030," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-19, October.

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