DOI: 10.12924/of2019.05010001 |Publication Date: 9 April 2019

Unbiased but Not Neutral

Thomas F. Döring 1, 2
1 Editor-in-Chief of Organic Farming, Librello, Basel, Switzerland
2 Agroecology and Organic Farming Group, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
Abstract:

Organic farming is often subject of heated scientific and public debates. This raises the question: How can scientists working in organic farming research achieve being impartial while simultaneously sharing enthusiasm about organic farming and promoting it as a solution to many of the problems of agricultural and food systems? Science needs to be unbiased and detached from its object of investigation. It should be hesitant to draw conclusions. Public statements must wait until evidence is strong and reproducible. Complex matters need to be communicated in a differentiated way that acknowledges pros and cons. Finally, science needs to follow a strict separation of facts and opinion. In which ways does this culture go hand in hand with a burning passion for organic farming?


Keywords: organic agriculture; values

Citation


2012 - 2024 by the authors; licensee Librello, Switzerland. This open access article was published under a Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).