§ Sir Richard Bodyasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what consideration has been given by him to converting any experimental farms for which he has responsibility into facilities for research and development into organic or biological methods of husbandry; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. JoplingI have recently given careful consideration to the possibility of converting part or all of one or more of my Department's experimental husbandary farms to organic methods of production. However, I have concluded, given competing claims for these limited research resources, that such a conversion would not be justified at public expense. The Agricultural Development and Advisory Service is nevertheless continuing to monitor developments in this field and is continuing a long-term monitoring project on soils, pests, diseases and crops on a commercial organic farm. Research and734W development work has been also undertaken on a variety of issues of relevance to organic farming including nitrogen-fixation by white clover; the production of crop varieties which are resistant to pests and diseases; and the development of novel non-chemical methods of pest control. My Department has also recently awarded a research contract to the university of Wales to undertake a three-year study of the nitrogen balance and nitrogen cycle in organic farming systems. Finally, AWLS is always prepared to consider undertaking research projects commissioned and paid for by the industry or by particular sectors of the industry.