Biodynamics: Agriculture for the Future | Pierre Bertrand

Multiple crises are currently threatening the stability of the world and the food sovereignty of peoples: climate crises, biodiversity crises, water crises, financial crises, social crises, energy crises, etc. It is urgent to change the agricultural paradigm in order to address them. Biodynamic agriculture can bring its original contribution to this new direction, which is essential for the future of our planet and humanity. More than 500 agricultural domains in France and over 5,000 worldwide practice biodynamics, which is increasingly successful. This method is based, among other things, on the conception of the farm as an "organism" and specific practices (use of dynamic preparations, attention to the rhythm of the planets). On the occasion of the 90th anniversary of this movement, researchers and practitioners from different countries have come together to present the richness of biodynamic practices and ideas, and to assess the challenges it will face in the future. Their contributions, gathered in this book, cover market gardening, fruit tree cultivation, viticulture, beekeeping, seed production, livestock farming, nutrition or landscape design, as well as the relationship between agriculture and education, the establishment of new economic and social forms, or the current state of scientific research on biodynamics. Biodynamics, far from being a fixed method with ready-made recipes, is an evolving agriculture that is often poorly understood. This book, of interest to both professionals and enthusiasts, will enable its readers to better understand its origin, its foundations, but above all its potential for the future. Ueli Hurter, a biodynamic farmer in Switzerland, is also the co-director of the agriculture section at the Goetheanum, the center of the Anthroposophical Society.