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Biodynamic Farming and Nutrition and the Conscious Evolution of Consumer Society

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Biodynamic Farming and Nutrition and the Conscious Evolution of Consumer Society Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie Wydział Studiów Międzynarodowych i Politycznych Instytut EUROPEISTYKI Marion Wierzbicki Nr albumu: 1072186 Kierunek Europeistyka Specjalność Euroculture Biodynamic Farming and Nutrition and the Conscious Evolution of Consumer Society Praca magisterska Promotor: Dr. Marcin Galent Kraków 2012 Master of Arts Thesis Euroculture Jagiellonian University, Kraków (Home) Palacký University, Olomouc (Host) September 2012 Biodynamic Farming and Nutrition and the Conscious Evolution of Consumer Society Submitted by: Marion Wierzbicki Student number nr 1072186 [email protected] Supervised by: Name of supervisor home university: Dr. Marcin Galent Name of supervisor host university: Prof. Gaudenz B. Assenza Avignon, France, September 30th, 2012 MA Programme Euroculture Declaration I, Marion Wierzbicki, hereby declare that this thesis, entitled “Biodynamic Farming and Nutrition and the Conscious Evolution of Consumer Society”, submitted as partial requirement for the MA Programme Euroculture, is my own original work and expressed in my own words. Any use made within it of works of other authors in any form (e.g. ideas, figures, texts, tables, etc.) are properly acknowledged in the text as well as in the bibliography. I hereby also acknowledge that I was informed about the regulations pertaining to the assessment of the MA thesis Euroculture and about the general completion rules for the Master of Arts Programme Euroculture. September 30th, 2012 Table of Contents I.Introduction .......................................................................................................................................1 Topic Area and Problem ............................................................................................................1 Research Question ....................................................................................................................2 Goals..........................................................................................................................................2 Relevance ..................................................................................................................................3 Methodology..............................................................................................................................3 State of research.........................................................................................................................4 Structure ....................................................................................................................................5 II. Comparative Study of Biodynamic, Organic and Conventional Agriculture .................................5 1. Introduction..................................................................................................................................5 1.a. Terminology .......................................................................................................................6 1.b. History and core principles.................................................................................................7 2. The farm: production.................................................................................................................10 2. a. Managing fertility and pest control..................................................................................10 2. b. Animal husbandry ...........................................................................................................12 3. Production: assessment..............................................................................................................14 3.a. Science and farmer’s role..................................................................................................14 3.b. Productivity.......................................................................................................................15 3.c. Quality ..............................................................................................................................16 3.d. Price .................................................................................................................................18 3.e. Sustainability.....................................................................................................................18 4. Supply chains: distribution........................................................................................................20 4.a. Processing: food quality....................................................................................................20 4.b. Globalization and re-localization of food systems............................................................21 4.c. Supply chains: fairness and responsibility .......................................................................23 5. Consumption: Food Culture and Food Systems........................................................................24 5. a. Food purchase: Relational, Communicative & Participatory...........................................25 5.b. Nutrition: Health, Taste and Sacredness...........................................................................26 6. Conclusion.................................................................................................................................28 II. The Economic and Political Integration of Biodynamics..............................................................29 1. Obstacles to a further development: Research Section..............................................................29 1.a. Research Methodology......................................................................................................29 1. b. Results .............................................................................................................................31 Future development..............................................................................................................31 Obstacles..............................................................................................................................31 Actors and solutions.............................................................................................................32 2. Where is Biodynamics Heading Towards? A new vision of economy and society...................33 2.a. Biodynamics and the Associative Economics ..................................................................33 2.b. Biodynamics and the Threefold Social Organism.............................................................34 3. Implications for Demeter policy-making...................................................................................35 3.a. Participatory Guarantee Systems ......................................................................................35 3.b. The Farm Organism ........................................................................................................36 3.a. Opening and Networking..................................................................................................37 4. Implications for EU politics: biodynamics and the CAP...........................................................38 4.a. An outlook on the Common Agricultural Policy...............................................................38 4.b. The legal proposal for the CAP 2013 ...............................................................................39 4.c. The “biodynamic proposal” for the CAP 2013 ................................................................40 5. Implications for Community action: Alternative supply chains................................................43 5.a. French Biodynamic Production and Alternative Supply Chains.......................................43 5.b. Alternative Supply Chains................................................................................................44 Markets and farmers markets...............................................................................................44 Community Supported Agriculture......................................................................................45 Co-ops..................................................................................................................................45 Vegetable box schemes: .......................................................................................................46 Organic Stores......................................................................................................................46 6. Implications for community Action: Land Tenure.....................................................................47 6.b. The solution: Land Trusts..................................................................................................47 7. Implications for local powers....................................................................................................49 7.a. Production ........................................................................................................................49 7.b. Supplying..........................................................................................................................50 8. Conclusion.................................................................................................................................51 IV. Cultural and Spiritual Integration.................................................................................................52 1. Biodynamic social and
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