Localizing the Nitrogen Imprint of the Paris Food Supply: The Potential of Organic Farming and Changes in Human Diet

Localising the nitrogen imprint of the Paris food supply: the potential of organic farming and changes in human diet

Biogeosciences Discussions ◽

10.5194/bgd-8-10979-2011 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 8 (6) ◽

pp. 10979-11002 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

G. Billen ◽

J. Garnier ◽

V. Thieu ◽

M. Silvestre ◽

S. Barles ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Organic Farming ◽

Food Supply ◽

Animal Feed ◽

Groundwater Resources ◽

Significant Proportion ◽

Nitrate Contamination ◽

Agricultural System ◽

Strong Impact ◽

Human Diet ◽

The North

Abstract. The Seine watershed has long been the food-supplying hinterland of Paris, providing most of the animal and vegetal protein consumed in the city. Nowadays, because of the land specialisation of agriculture made possible by the shift from manure-based to synthetic nitrogen fertilisation, the Seine watershed, although it exports 80% of its huge cereal production, still provides most of the cereal consumed by the Paris agglomeration. The meat and milk supply originate, however, mainly from regions in the North and West of France, specialised in animal farming and importing about 30% of their feed from South America. As it works today, this system is responsible for a severe nitrate contamination of surface groundwater resources. Herein two scenarios of re-localising Paris's food supply are explored, based on organic farming and local provision of animal feed. We show that for the Seine watershed it is technically possible to design an agricultural system able to provide all the plant- and animal-based food required by the population, to deliver sub-root water meeting the drinking water standards and still to export a significant proportion of its production to areas less suitable for cereal cultivation. Decreasing the share of animal products in the human diet has a strong impact on the nitrogen imprint of urban food supply.

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Localising the nitrogen imprint of the Paris food supply: the potential of organic farming and changes in human diet

Biogeosciences ◽

10.5194/bg-9-607-2012 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 607-616 ◽

Cited By ~ 32

Author(s):

G. Billen ◽

J. Garnier ◽

V. Thieu ◽

M. Silvestre ◽

S. Barles ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Organic Farming ◽

Food Supply ◽

Animal Feed ◽

Groundwater Resources ◽

Significant Proportion ◽

Nitrate Contamination ◽

Agricultural System ◽

Strong Impact ◽

Human Diet ◽

The North

Abstract. The Seine watershed has long been the food-supplying hinterland of Paris, providing most of the animal and vegetal protein consumed in the city. Nowadays, the shift from manure-based to synthetic nitrogen fertilisation, has made possible a strong land specialisation of agriculture in the Seine watershed: it still provides most of the cereal consumed by the Paris agglomeration, but exports 80% of its huge cereal production. On the other hand the meat and milk supply originates mainly from regions in the North and West of France, specialised in animal farming and importing about 30% of their feed from South America. As it works today, this system is responsible for a severe nitrate contamination of surface and groundwater resources. Herein two scenarios of re-localising Paris's food supply are explored, based on organic farming and local provision of animal feed. We show that for the Seine watershed it is technically possible to design an agricultural system able to provide all the plant- and animal-based food required by the population, to deliver sub-root water meeting the drinking water standards and still to export a significant proportion of its production to areas less suitable for cereal cultivation. Decreasing the share of animal products in the human diet has a strong impact on the nitrogen imprint of urban food supply.

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LOCALIZING THE NITROGEN IMPRINT OF THE PARIS FOODSUPPLY: THE POTENTIAL OF ORGANIC FARMING AND CHANGES IN HUMAN DIET

Organic Agricultural Practices ◽

10.1201/b17368-5 ◽

2014 ◽

pp. 63-86

Author(s):

G Billen ◽

J Garnier ◽

V Thieu ◽

M Silvestre ◽

S Barles ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Organic Farming ◽

Human Diet

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How to influence the trajectory of organic agriculture’s development when you are not in the driver’s seat? The case of the French National Federation of Organic Farming

Open Agriculture ◽

10.1515/opag-2018-0066 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 632-643

Author(s):

Quentin Chance ◽

Ronan Le Velly ◽

Frédéric Goulet

Keyword(s):

Supply Chains ◽

Organic Farming ◽

Food Supply ◽

Economic Model ◽

Direct Control ◽

Strong Growth ◽

Food Supply Chains ◽

Normative Framework ◽

National Federation ◽

Regional Associations

Abstract This article describes the actions taken by the National Federation of Organic Farming (FNAB) to try to influence the course of organic agriculture's development in France. This federation wields the strength that accrues from its network of regional associations, but has no direct control over the economic actions of farmers and enterprises in the organic sector. It is trying to influence these actions in three different ways. First, it is drawing up a normative framework, a stabilised discourse about the risks that are linked to the current strong growth of the market and about the economic model and values that it wants to defend in this context. Second, the FNAB tries to affect the ways that the food supply chains are organised by promoting certain production and trade organisation schemes. Third, the FNAB produces information and references to help farmers and economic operators get their market bearings.

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