1st Edition

Organic Production and Use of Alternative Crops

By Franc Bavec, Martina Bavec Copyright 2006
    264 Pages 31 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    264 Pages 31 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    Merging coverage of two increasingly popular and quickly growing food trends, Organic Production and Use of Alternative Crops provides an overview of the basic principles of organic agriculture and highlights its multifunctionality with special emphasis on the conservation of rare crops and their uses. Considering more than 30 disregarded and neglected crops suitable for growth in temperate climates, each chapter covers the botany, climate conditions, cultivars, production and yield, growth and ecology, organic cultivation, harvesting, handling and storage, and utilization where the information is available and applicable to the crop under discussion. Other topics include organic production systems, the nutritional and health benefits of products, food processing, and suggestions for some homemade foods.

    The authors have a wide range of experience in the growing and processing of alternative crops, the management of the processing projects, and the marketing of organic products. They have worked in close cooperation with many small scale processing activities on farms and in the food industry. Drawing on their combined experience, they provide a summary of the major problems and the knowledge base for utilization of alternative crops in new products. The broad range of coverage and interdisciplinary approach make this book a comprehensive reference and useful tool not only for the production of alternative crops but also for the development of new niche market products.

    INTRODUCTION
    What is Organic Agriculture?
    Organic Food
    Multifunctionality of Organic Agriculture
    Organic Crop Production
    Contribution of Organic Agriculture to the Conservation of Alternative Crops and their Utilization Development
    References

    CEREALS
    Spelt
    Einkorn
    Emmer
    Kamut
    Triticale
    Intermediate Wheatgrass
    References

    PSEUDOCEREALS (WITHOUT MILLETS)
    Buckwheat
    Quinoa
    Grain Amaranths
    Wild Rice
    References

    MILLETS
    Proso Millet
    Foxtail, Foxtail Millet
    Pearl Millet
    Finger Millet
    White Fonio
    Barnyard Millet
    Little Millet
    References

    ALTERNATIVE OIL PLANTS
    Oil (Seed) Pumpkins
    Camelina
    Safflower
    White Mustard
    (Garden) Poppy
    References

    ALTERNATIVE FIBER, ROOT, AND TUBER CROPS
    Industrial and Edible-Seed Hemp
    Flax
    Jerusalem Artichoke
    Sweet Potato
    References

    LEGUMES
    Chickpea
    Groundnut
    Soybean: Small Attention to the Important Crop
    Vigna: A Few Words about a Widely Spread Genus
    References

    SOME TRADITIONAL AND NEW KINDS OF FOOD FROM SOME ALTERNATIVE CROPS
    Homemade Food from Buckwheat
    Homemade Food from Amaranths
    Homemade Food from Millet
    References

    Index

    Biography

    Franc Bavec, Martina Bavec