Quality and authentication of organic vs conventional animal products

Abstract

This article reviews the current state of knowledge on the quality of organic animal products and on the methods developed so far to authenticate their organic origin. As farming practices vary in both organic and conventional farming, the results are heterogeneous. We pinpoint the farming practices underlying the differences observed to shed light on the consequences of possible trajectories for organic farming. In general, quality attributes are more variable for organic products, linked to a lower level of inputs and/or greater variability in farming conditions, and a lower genetic selection for broilers. Improved quality attributes include a higher content of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), particularly n-3 PUFA, in organic meat and cow’s milk, and reduced risk of drug residues and bacterial resistance to antimicrobials. But both outdoor access and a frequently longer rearing period increase the probability and duration of animal exposure to potential environmental contaminants and the risk of their bioaccumulation in animal products. We identified antagonisms between quality attributes for lamb and pork. The implications of greater variability in product quality for consumers’ acceptability and the adaptation of manufacturing processes remain largely unexplored. The reliability of authentication methods is hampered by the variability in farming practices, since they are based on differences in animal diet.