Summary
This global meta-analysis compared the mean effects and variability of seven sustainability metrics between organic and conventional farming systems. The findings reveal a critical trade-off: organic farms demonstrated reliable environmental benefits (higher biotic abundance, richness, soil carbon, and profitability) with low variability in these metrics, but exhibited greater crop yield variability than conventional systems. Despite lower average yields and higher yield variability, organic systems achieved similar profitability to conventional systems due to organic price premiums, suggesting that ecological farming practices reliably enhance environmental stewardship whilst reducing predictability of crop production.
UK applicability
These findings are directly applicable to UK farming policy and practice, particularly given the shift towards organic and agroecological systems in agri-environmental schemes and net-zero strategies. The results suggest UK organic producers can expect reliable environmental gains but should anticipate greater yield variability, informing risk management and subsidy design; they also support the economic viability of organic transition where market premiums are available.
Key measures
Biotic abundance, biotic richness, soil organic carbon, soil carbon stocks, crop yield, total production costs, profitability, and variance in these metrics
Outcomes reported
The meta-analysis assessed mean effects and variability across seven sustainability metrics in organic compared to conventional farming systems: biotic abundance, biotic richness, soil organic carbon, soil carbon stocks, crop yield, total production costs, and profitability. The study quantified trade-offs between environmental performance and yield reliability across global farming systems.
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