The imbalance in research funding : the case of organic farming in EU.

Organic farming is gaining legitimacy in the media and political agenda, but is still considered as alternative in the research agenda. Comparing the funding of research programs in agriculture, biotechnology and organic farming at the EU level and in four countries (France, Belgium, Germany and The Netherlands) will render this imbalance more visible (part 1). Within this unfavourable context, a series of specific research initiatives should be emphasized (part 2). The potential of organic farming in the transition towards more sustainable food systems will be demonstrated along two lines. On the one hand, a review of scientific literature across the different dimensions of sustainability demonstrates the relative efficiency of the organic farming approach to address the main issues of the XXIst century in agriculture and food systems (part 3). On the other hand, four case studies illustrate the specificities and impact of research specifically supporting organic farming (part 4)