SOAR is a research school. In addition to the focus on PhD students, SOAR also includes graduates, postdocs and supervisors in the activities and networks. This is important because they also constitute the research environment, in which the PhD student is under education. SOAR wants to contribute to the professional discussions with a special focus on the organic food and farming systems.
The research interests of SOAR cover a wide range of subjects within organic agriculture and food systems:
It is the overall aim to create knowledge that can be used to strengthen the relations between primarily producers of products in multifunctional systems and consumers. Specifically, it is the aim to investigate and document ways of organisations, methods and tools within the organic and low input grassland based beef production chain, that at the same time make such systems economical viable and fulfil expectations of the consumers and the society at large
Background
In Denmark beef production has traditionally been based on utilization of low productive areas with grazing, which has played an important role in nature diversity and maintaining of the open landscape. EU member states are encouraged to preserve permanent pastures – wetland as well as mountainous areas. In addition, grazing cattle contributes to a positive picture of agriculture to the local citizens and the tourism. Besides this, aspects like animal welfare, nutrient surplus and global warming might be positive affected, if a larger proportion of the beef consumption is produced in systems aiming for a multicriteria optimisation.
At present we observe a decrease of grassland surface and permanent pasture (mainly transformed into bush). The suckle beef sector is marginal and the beef meat consumed in Denmark is mainly coming from dairy cows and intensive systems of dairy steers fattening.
On the other hand, a range of multifunctional grassland based beef production systems exists in other EU countries
How would it be possible to develop multifunctional grassland based beef production systems in Denmark?
To make this optimisation market driven it is necessary to create organisations and develop tools that can take into account the value adding qualities of the multifunctional beef production in the market-relation and communication between producers and consumers.
We assume that:
• Part of the Danish consumer is willing to pay for the additional goods and values that are embedded in beef from grassland systems if these can be documented and transferred from producer and consumer
• The farmers are willing to adapt new production strategies that are developed in dialog between farmers and stakeholders
