Claims made by the Soil Association (SA) surrounding early results of a study on organic food and nutrition, prior to peer review, have been slammed as premature and mischievous by the industry.
Fresh Produce Consortium chief executive Nigel Jenney said he welcomes any scientific work that helps with the understanding of food nutrition, but sounded a stark warning to the SA regarding its claims that the study showed organic produce has more health benefits than conventionally grown lines.
“We look forward to the peer review rather than mischievous claims issued prematurely,” said Jenney. “Releasing this information prior to such a review could call into question the study’s eventual findings.”
The SA said that early results from the EU-funded study indicate that organic fresh produce grown as part of the research contained 40 per cent more antioxidants than its conventional version. But one insider close to the research team said linking this to increased nutritional benefits is misleading. “I am very surprised that these results have come to light,” he told FPJ.
“There must be about 20 collaborators working with the research leader around Europe and they are a very close-knit gang that all keep their cards close to their chest. What is not clear at this stage is whether the differences that have been found in antioxidant levels are meaningful.”
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