The appeal-to-nature fallacy: Homeopathy and biodynamic agriculture in official EU regulations

Authors

  • José Miguel Mulet Polytechnic University of Valencia (Spain), Institute for Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology (CSIC-UPV).

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7203/metode.8.9984

Keywords:

EU organic food, appeal to nature, homeopathy, biodynamic agriculture, pseudoscience

Abstract

There is no scientific evidence to support the affirmation that organic food is more nutritious or that its production is more sustainable than traditional food. In addition, productivity is very low and, concomitantly, the price is higher. This article reviews the basics of EU regulations on organic food production and concludes that, for the most part, they mislead the consumer and are not science based. Most of them rely on concepts related to the appeal-to-nature fallacy, with the explicit presence of pseudosciences, such as homeopathy or biodynamic agriculture. On the other hand, interesting aspects such as the carbon footprint or local production are not present in the regulations, and technological improvements that could be useful for organic food production are excluded.

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Author Biography

José Miguel Mulet, Polytechnic University of Valencia (Spain), Institute for Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology (CSIC-UPV).

Professor of Biotechnology at the Polytechnic University of Valencia (Spain). Researcher at the Institute for Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology (CSIC-UPV). His research focuses on describing the mechanisms of plant tolerance to environmental stress and identifying genes that can be used to design plants tolerant to cold or droughts. At the same time, he works as a scientific populariser; his latest book is Transgénicos sin miedo (Destino, 2017).

References

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Published

2018-06-05

How to Cite

Mulet, J. M. (2018). The appeal-to-nature fallacy: Homeopathy and biodynamic agriculture in official EU regulations. Metode Science Studies Journal, (8), 173–179. https://doi.org/10.7203/metode.8.9984
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