Summary
This global meta-analysis of 60 crops across six continents examined whether the sustainability benefits of organic farming—in terms of biodiversity, yield, and profitability—depend on landscape context. The findings reveal that organic sites consistently supported greater biodiversity than conventional ones, with the largest ecological benefits occurring in landscapes characterised by large field sizes, whereas economic benefits were greatest in landscapes with small fields. The results suggest that landscape typology and socioeconomic factors significantly mediate the multifunctional sustainability outcomes of organic agriculture.
UK applicability
The findings are potentially applicable to UK organic farming policy and targeting, as the UK contains diverse landscapes ranging from intensive arable regions to smaller-scale mixed farming areas. However, the meta-analysis spanned global conditions; UK-specific landscape characteristics, regulatory context, and market conditions may modulate the relationship between landscape structure and organic farming performance observed in the broader sample.
Key measures
Biodiversity (species richness or abundance), crop yields, profitability, landscape composition (percent cropland), compositional heterogeneity (number and diversity of cover types), and configurational heterogeneity (spatial arrangement of cover types)
Outcomes reported
The meta-analysis assessed how landscape composition and configuration affected biodiversity, crop yields, and profitability in organic versus conventional farming systems across 60 crop types on six continents. Findings examined whether organic agriculture's sustainability benefits varied depending on landscape characteristics such as field size and cropland intensity.
Topic tags
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