Brussels – November 13, 2013

The organic food agenda A broader scope is needed!

Machteld Huber, MD, senior researcher Louis Bolk Institute, The Netherlands

We aim to find relations in a scientific way:

Is there a relation between the feeding of the cows and

the health of our children?

Our mission: ‘Resilient systems’ that work

What is robustness & resilience? This:

Control model Conventional approach

Adaptation model Dynamic approach:

Robustness & resilience

• focus on a problem

• variation is controlled

• continuous monitoring

• direct intervention

• static equilibrium

• focus on the system

• use of variation

• stimulation of selfregulation

• indirect intervention

• dynamic equilibrium

(Ten Napel et al., 2006; WUR/LBI)

Relation of nutrient (fertilizer) availability and

response in secondary metabolites

(Net Assimilation Rate)

(Relative Growth Rate)

(Stamp 2003)

Organic/low input

Subsistence farming

Conventional

/high input

Sustainable Food & Health

Differences in plants are found.

Can these be understood?

- Yes, differences in fertilizer regime bring differences in plants:

less and slow fertilizer makes better defence possible, which

results in more aroma (many chefs prefer organic products)

and more health promoting substances.

- Yes, traditional and locally adapted varieties bring more

nutritious products (observations Africa).

- To be considered: modern insights are that one plant contains

7.500-10.000 different nutrients!

We conducted an intervention study in

animals: “Organic More Healthy?”

“A search for biomarkers of potential health effects

induced by organic products, investigated in a

chicken model”

The Animals - Results

Growth: Animals on the Feed B grew stronger till the

KLH challenge. After that the Feed A-group took over

(catch-up growth).

Growth of body weight 2nd gen: mean ± SEM

Age in weeks

gra

m p

er

we

ek

0 5 10

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

* * *

KLH

lineH

0 5 10

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

******* **

KLH

lineC

0 5 10

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

** *

KLH

lineL

A

B

Since then often criticized, but never changed.

Health is still defined by the WHO definition of 1948:

“A state of complete physical, mental, and social

well-being and not merely the absence of disease,

or infirmity.”

In 2009 we organized an international

Invitational Conference in 2009 about an

operational concept of health.

The outcome that met consensus:

“Health as the ability to adapt and to

self manage”.

Which was published in the British Medical Journal:

Thank you for your attention!