Ethics in organic agriculture

Zanoli R. and S. Naspetti (2001). Values and Ethics in Organic Food Consumption . In Pasquali M. (ed.), Preprints of the Third Congress of the European Society for Agricultural and Food Ethics Food Safety, Food Quality, Food Ethics, Florence, 3-5 October 2001, Milan A Q. 

This chapter aims to illustrate the role and importance of ethical (fair) trade in the agricultural production chain. Towards that, we will initially analyse the organic market and will illustrate the role of the accreditation schemes and the local certification bodies. This is followed by a section on ethical (fair) trade discussing the evolution of the concept(s) and their association with organic production. The last sections examine the view of the stakeholders and selected supply chain members in relation to ethical (fair) trade, before drawing relevant conclusions. 

Verhoog, H., Matze, M., Lammerts van Bueren, E. and Baars, T. 2003. The role of the concept of the natural/naturalness in organic farming. Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics 16 29-49,... 

Lund, V. 2002. Ethics and Animal Welfare in Organic Animal Husbandry - an Interdisciplinary Approach. PhD thesis. Acta Universitatis Agriculturae Sueciae Veterinaria 137. Department of Animal Environment and Health, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Skara. 

Lund, V., Hemlin, S. and Lockeretz, W. 2002. Organic livestock production as viewed by Swedish farmers and organic initiators. Agriculture and Human Values 19(3) 255-268. Lund, V., Anthony, R. and Rocklinsberg, H. 2004a. The ethical contract as a tool in organic... 

It is clear that the idealism set out initially in the principles of organic agriculture has had to be tempered by practical considerations. The standards adopted have to aim for a balance between the desire of consumers for organic products and considerations of ethical and ecological integrity and the practical and financial needs of producers. As a result, synthetic vitamins are now allowed in organic poultry feeds, with some restrictions. 

Organic agriculture is also interested in non-food crops, like flowers or textiles, that may receive a boost from a diffusion of the ethical consuming culture (e.g., see Perilli, 2006), since the adoption of a new life-style in food consumption may be reflected also on other aspects of an individual s life, like wearing environment-fiiendly clothes, using bio-engineering concepts and so on. 

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