Center for Agroecology

This brief summary provides an overview of the Apprenticeship in Ecological Horticulture's alumni survey methods and results. The survey was administered to graduates of the six-month training program in organic farming, gardening and food systems that takes place each year at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and is administered by the Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems through UCSC Extension.

The objectives of this study, conducted from 2005 to 2007, were (1) to assess the habitat quality of different hedgerow plants for insect natural enemies and pests, (2) to track the movement of insects from hedgerows into adjacent crop fields and (3) to test the effect of hedgerows on parasitism rates of an economically important pest, the cabbage looper (Trichoplusia ni). This study took place at four farms with hedgerows on the Central Coast of California.

This research brief examines the livelihoods of small-scale coffee growing households in Nicaragua, comparing those that are selling to certified "specialty" coffee markets with those selling to conventional markets. The study uses the Millennium Development Goals as established by the United Nations in 2000 as a framework for analyzing the current status of 177 Nicaraguan households involved in small-scale coffee production. The authors conclude that, despite some recent gains in terms of coffee price increases), small-scale growers—no matter whether they sell to certified or conventional markets—are in fact losing economic ground due to declining real prices and the rising costs of sustainable production, a situation that needs to be addressed by the coffee industry, certification groups, producer organizations, and governments.

This research brief examines student, staff, and faculty’s food-related concerns, interests, and level of support for specific food criteria, including whether they would be willing to pay more for food produced in an organic and “socially just” manner. With increasing interest in “farm-to-college” programs designed to bring local, sustainably produced food into college cafeterias, there is a need for information on the attitudes and interest of those served by such programs.

Survey form used for study of food-related concerns, interests, and level of support for specific food criteria (socially just, organic, small scale, etc.) at UC Santa Cruz.

This research brief explores the apparent conflict between new food safety rules designed to minimize the presence of wildlife around farm fields, and environmental protection efforts designed to decrease the impacts of pesticides, fertilizers, and sediments on the environment.

Using information from existing research, the brief examines the effectiveness of measures being used by Central Coast growers to address environmental problems. We then summarize the history of food safety issues on the Central Coast, and outline potential sources of crop contamination in the field. Finally, we discuss the ways that food safety guidelines conflict with environmental protection methods, proposing the idea that such methods could in fact be designed to reduce contamination sources and improve food safety.

This research brief examines whether alternative food initiatives (AFIs) such as community supported agriculture (CSA) and farmers’ markets can meet the food security needs of low-income consumers. It is based on interviews with and surveys of farmers' market and CSA managers throughout California. The authors conclude that AFIs are not and cannot be substitutes for state entitlements in meeting the food security needs of low-income people.

In this research brief we present data from water quality monitoring conducted between October 2000 and September 2004, to demonstrate the way that agricultural land use influences phosphorus concentrations in streams and rivers. We discuss the nature of phosphorus pollution from agriculture along the Central Coast, examine the implications of these data for agricultural regulations, and offer suggestions for reducing phosphorus losses from farmlands.

This research brief reviews the findings from multiple regression analysis of date from a consumer survey on interest in food system issues. Three topics were analyzed, 1) preferences for alternative ‘ecolabels’, 2) willingness to pay for strawberries with criteria for a living wage and safe working conditions for farmworkers, and 3) interest in education topics. Variables included in these analyses were gender, age, ethnicity, income, education, frequent sourcing of local food, and frequent purchasing of organic food. Also tested, and included where statistically significant (p < .05) in at least one model, were the following variables: households with children and level of agreement with the following statements, “I try to consider how my purchase(s) will affect the environment,” “There isn’t much that an individual consumer can do about environmental problems” and “Most people don’t care about how their food is produced.” All of these variables were dichotomous (i.e. binary choices like yes or no) with exceptions of age, which had a range of 20 to 99, and those that asked for agreement with statements above, which were measured on a scale from 1 to 7.