Summary
This long-term comparative field experiment quantified agroecosystem multifunctionality across Europe's three most widespread arable cropping systems. Organic and conservation agriculture substantially enhanced regulating and supporting ecosystem services—including biodiversity, soil and water quality, and climate mitigation—whilst conventional agriculture delivered highest yields but reduced overall multifunctionality. The findings illustrate a fundamental trade-off between productivity and environmental protection in current agroecosystem management paradigms.
UK applicability
The findings are directly applicable to UK arable farming, as the experiment evaluated cropping systems prevalent across European temperate agriculture. The results inform UK policy discussions on balancing productivity targets with environmental stewardship, particularly under post-Brexit agricultural subsidy reform and net-zero commitments.
Key measures
43 agroecosystem properties including biodiversity, soil and water quality, climate mitigation potential, crop yield, and economic performance
Outcomes reported
The study measured and compared 43 agroecosystem properties across three cropping systems to quantify overall agroecosystem multifunctionality, including agronomic yield, economic performance, and ecological services. Results demonstrated that organic and conservation agriculture enhanced ecosystem multifunctionality through regulating and supporting services, whilst conventional agriculture maximised yield at the expense of environmental performance.
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