E. T. Lammerts van Bueren,* P. C. Struik,
M. Tiemens-Hulscher, and E. Jacobsen
Abstract
The natural approach taken by organic
agriculture obviates the use of synthetic agrochemicals
and emphasizes farming in accordance with agroecological
principles. Also implicit in this approach is an appreciation
for the integrity of living farm organisms, with the
integrity being evaluated from a biocentric perspective.
The ethical value assigned to integrity of organisms
has challenged us to develop criteria for evaluating
both integrity and breeding techniques. For cultivated
plants, integrity refers to their inherent nature,
their wholeness, completeness, species-specific characteristics,
and their being in balance with their (organically
farmed) environment. We evaluate integrity using criteria
derived from four different perspectives: integrity
of life, plant-specific integrity, genotypic integrity,
and phenotypic integrity. These criteria were used
to assess whether existing breeding and propagation
techniques violate the integrity of crop plants. In
vitro techniques and techniques that engineer at the
DNA level appeared to be incompatible with the integrity
of crops, with the exception of use
of DNA markers. On the other hand, breeding techniques
that work
at the level of breeding, evaluation, and selection
for whole plant performance, and which do not break
reproductive barriers between species, may conform
to the principles of organic farming. In the selection
process, the so-called breeder’s eye
can be developed to become a more consciously applied
instrument for perceiving and assessing aspects of
the wholeness or phenotypic integrity of a plant.
Thus, the challenge given by the organic community
to breeders implies the further development of scientific
approaches, evaluation, and choice of breeding techniques,
and the systematic development OF the respectful and
artful eye of the individual breeder.
Keywords: Organic
Plant Breeding, Integrity of Plants,organic agriculture,
breeding techniques,
Organis farming.
