Organically grown carrots and onions match conventionally grown antioxidant levels

By Nathan Gray

- Last updated on GMT

Related tags Nutrition Antioxidant Agriculture Fsa

Organically grown produce may offer no nutritional benefits over traditional growth methods, according to a new study.

Published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry​, the study reports new evidence that organically grown onions, carrots, and potatoes generally do not have higher levels of polyphenol antioxidants than vegetables grown with traditional fertilizers and pesticides.

“On the basis of the present study carried out under well controlled conditions, it cannot be concluded that organically grown onions, carrots, and potatoes generally have higher contents of health-promoting secondary metabolites in comparison with the conventionally cultivated ones,”​ stated the researchers, led by Pia Knuthsen from the National Food Institute at Technical University of Denmark.

The new study adds further confusion to the ongoing debate on whether organically grown fruit and vegetables are any more nutritious than their traditionally cultivated counterparts.

Organic vs Conventional: Controversial

The fundamental differences between organic and conventional agricultural systems are in fertilization strategy and soil fertility management, which in theory affect the nutrient composition in plants and provide healthier better tasting produce. However, previous studies on the nutrient content of organically and conventionally grown plants have generated contradicting results.

In 2009 an FSA review​ on the nutritional content of organic and conventional produce sparked controversy after it concluded that there are no differences. The research conducted at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine concluded that “there is no evidence to support the selection of organically produced foodstuffs to increase the intake of specific nutrients or nutritionally relevant substances.”

However, several smaller studies have since reported higher levels of certain nutrients in organically grown produce, including strawberries​. In addition, a French review​ completely contradicted the findings of the FSA concluding that “organic plant products contain more dry matter and minerals – such as iron and magnesium – and more antioxidant polyphenols like phenols and salicylic acid.”

Knuthsen and colleagues pointed out that there are many reasons to pay a premium for organic food products, including improved animal welfare, environmental protection and better taste and freshness. However, they noted that the health benefits of organic food consumption are still controversial and not considered scientifically well-documented.

“The objective of our study was to compare the content of selected flavonoids and phenolic acids in organically and conventionally grown onions, potatoes, and carrots and to evaluate if the ability of the crops to synthesize selected secondary metabolites is systematically affected by growth systems across different growth years as well as geographic locations [and soil types],” ​stated the authors.

Nutritional value

The researchers reported that onions and carrots, showed no statistically significant differences between growth systems for any of the analyzed polyphenols over a two year growing period.

Organically grown potatoes fertilized with cover crops, were however observed to have a higher content of one polyphenol – chlorogenic acid (5-CQA) – compared to the conventional growth system.

No benefit?

The researchers concluded that, based on the results of their study, it cannot be concluded that organically grown onions, carrots, and potatoes have higher contents of polyphenols and related secondary metabolites, in comparison with conventionally cultivated ones.

“The ability of crops to synthesize selected secondary metabolites was not systematically affected by the growth system across different growth years and geographical locations,”​ they stated.

However, some commentators have previously pointed out that nutrition is not the main reason that many people opt for organics, stating that the avoidance of pesticides and consumer preference for produce grown using land-conscious practices account for much of the sector.

Source: Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry
Volume 58, Issue 19, Pages 10323–10329, doi: 10.1021/jf101091c
“Effects of Organic and Conventional Growth Systems on the Content of Flavonoids in Onions and Phenolic Acids in Carrots and Potatoes”
Authors: M. Søltoft, J. Nielsen, K. Holst Laursen, S. Husted, U. Halekoh, P. Knuthsen

Related news

Related products

show more

Consumer Attitudes on Ultra-Processed Foods Revealed

Consumer Attitudes on Ultra-Processed Foods Revealed

Content provided by Ayana Bio | 12-Jan-2024 | White Paper

Ayana Bio conducted the Ultra-Processed Food (UPF) Pulse survey, offering insight into consumers’ willingness to consume UPFs, as well as the variables...

 Four actionable steps to reduce allergen recalls

Four actionable steps to reduce allergen recalls

Content provided by FoodChain ID | 04-Oct-2023 | White Paper

Failing to mitigate allergen risks has serious consequences - not just for consumer safety, poor allergen procedures can also cause financial losses and...

Cracking Plant-Based Dairy Challenges with Potato

Cracking Plant-Based Dairy Challenges with Potato

Avebe | Recorded the 13-Jun-2023 | Webinar

Don’t let the idea of creating tasty plant-based dairy products intimidate you! Replacing animal - for plant-based ingredients can seem like a difficult...

Related suppliers

4 comments

Show more

Organic or not?

Posted by Mellifluous: A Food Blog About Honey,

I think the use of the word "traditional" is misleading. Pesticides, fertilizers and other chemicals might be in *conventional* use these days, but they are not part of *tradition.* Beyond that, I concur with other posters, that the health benefit is the lack of those chemicals, both within and on our food and within our surroundings.

Report abuse

Written in support of the chemical industry

Posted by Irene Del Bono,

Chemicals with your strawberries, anyone? How hard did they have to look and how many studies did they have to do to find something - anything - so they could report that there are no differences between organic and chemically-grown food? Hello - we are sick from, and sick of, eating chemical-laced foods from chemical-laced fields and wondering what the long-term effects on our and our childrens' bodies are. Where are those studies - tell me the difference in long term health benefits or detriments from eating organic vs. chemically enhanced/controlled foods. That's what I really want to know about.

Report abuse

Did they plant the specimens side by side?

Posted by SPGMont,

Again, any organic farmer worth his or her salt, is also engaging in biodynamic soil renewal. The soils at organic farms tend to be much healthier. If all they did was set aside a field that has been depleted by industrial farming practices, I would assume the chemical profile of the food produced would be similar. Again this is junk science that is then blasted all over the place as "proof" the organics are what...some sort of scheme to get rich quick? Fool the public?

Report abuse

Follow us

Products

View more

Webinars