biologische Landwirtschaft#

Organic Farming: Organic, or environmentally responsible farming, in Austria comprises all forms of farming controlled by a number of certifying associations, such as Ernte, Demeter, and others, which were first initiated by individual Austrian farmers. Since 1983, a standard for certified organic farming has been laid down in the "Austrian Food Standards", and since July 1, 1994 by EU regulation 2092/91, prescribing the following main principles: Optimisation and recycling of the farm's own resources (e.g., field forage and growth of leguminosae, use of fertilisers produced on the farm itself), use of naturally occurring regulation mechanisms (for example, in preventive plant protection: diversified cultivation of the land and rotation of crops), abstention from the use of chemical/synthetic pesticides and easily soluble chemical fertilisers, use of benign methods of pest and disease control for soil, crops and animals, and animal-friendly husbandry. Organic farming is considered to be the form of agriculture with the highest degree of ecologisation and is thus financially supported by subsidies from the EU, the national government and the provinces. In 1997, there were approximately 20,000 organic farmers in Austria, covering an area of 335,700 hectares, accounting for more than 8% of farms and representing the highest density of organic farms in Europe.

Literature#