Home > Research Projects > Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Human Nutrition and Consumer Sciences

RESEARCH PROJECTS

Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Human Nutrition and Consumer Sciences

A Division of Organic Foodstuffs in Warsaw Agricultural University is a teaching and research Unit interested for many years in the quality of the organically produced foods and their impact on animal and human health. We are also interested in the wider environmental and social context of the organic farming, especially in the mutual relationship between environment and agricultural production quality. Our group consists of the specialists in ecology, horticulture, nutrition, environment protection, animal science and public health. The interdisciplinary and multidirectional background of our group provides a good basis to conduct complicated research projects. The main research projects conducted over last 15 years have been connected with the nutritive and sensory value of the plant products from the organic cultivation (potatoes, carrots, cabbage, apples, tomatoes, paprika, onions) and some processed plant foods (apple preserves, potato puree). The Division also conducts some studies on food habits and food intake within the consumers eating organically vs. conventionally. At present we start the animal dietary intervention study of effect of organic vs. conventional food production methods on health and well – being of rats within the QualityLowInputFood EU project. The Division participated also in other EU projects connected with organic agriculture.

Contact person: prof. dr Ewa Rembiałkowska
E-mail: ewa_rembialkowska@sggw.pl
Internet: http://www.sggw.waw.pl/
Nowoursynowska 159 c
02-787 Warszawa, Poland
Tel.: 0048 22 59 37 0 38
Fax: 0048 22 59 37 0 36

The main research activities in period 2004 - 2008:

1. Evaluation of the bio-compounds level in organic vs. conventionally produced plant crops and their preserves
   Some studies completed in Europe and USA have indicated higher level of the bio compounds in the organically produced plant products than in the conventional ones. However, the scientific evidence is still insufficient in this respect. Therefore such comparative studies are conducted in Division of Organic Foodstuffs for last several years. We analyse the nutritive and sensory values of such crops as apples, blackcurrants, tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, carrots, red beetroots and potatoes. In dependence on the crop type the following quality parameters are determined: the content of dry matter, total and reducing sugars, vitamin C, carotenoids, poliphenolic substances, phenolic acids, flavonoids, free amino acids, glycoalcaloids, antioxidative activity. The sensory values are also estimated using both the consumer and advanced QDA method. Moreover, we analyse the nutritive and sensory properties of some plant preserves as apple pure, apple juice, potato pure, tomato juice, frozen tomatoes and bell peppers and pickled bell peppers. Most of our result confirm the better nutritive and sensory values of the organically grown plant crops in comparison to the conventional ones. However, we sometimes obtain the contrary results. For the future it is important to find the main factors influencing the quality traits and to select the best cultivars fulfilling the high demands of the organically eating consumers.
   
   
2. Different aspects of organic and conventional food consumers’ lifestyle
   Organic food is becoming more and more popular nowadays. At the same time there are still very few studies assessing objectively the influence of organic food on human health. Therefore we decided to analyze and to compare self-assessed health state of organic and conventional food consumers together with some aspects of their lifestyle. Such comparative survey studies comprising Polish consumers (women) have been conducted in Division of Organic Foodstuffs for last several years. The respondents have been asked to fill up anonymous surveys composed of 4 parts concerning health state, nutrition, living environment quality and contact with nature. Most of our results show that organic consumers assess their health state significantly better in comparison to the conventional consumers. Organic consumers’ diet is also much closer to the nutritional recommendations. Moreover, analyses of living environment quality show significant difference in favor of organic consumers. At the same time analyses don’t show any significant differences between organic and conventional consumers in terms of the contacts with nature. We are going to continue similar studies in Poland (comprising also men), also in Germany and Greece, to confirm the obtained results and to get more evidences whether the promotion of ecological lifestyle including organic food consumption can influence positively nutritional pattern and the self-assessed health state of consumers.
   
   
3. Improving quality and safety and reduction of cost in the European organic and “low input” food supply chains (QualityLowInputFood - QLIF)
   The Integrated Project QualityLowInputFood aims to improve quality, ensure safety and reduce cost along the organic and "low input" food supply chains through research, dissemination and training activities. The project was initiated on March 1, 2004. It is funded by the European Union with a total budget of 18 million Euros. The research involves thirty-one research institutions, companies and universities throughout Europe and beyond, in that Division of Organic Foodstuffs (WULS, Poland). The research activities, which are carried out in order to fulfill the objectives of QLIF, are subdivided into seven subprojects. Prof. Ewa Rembiałkowska, chairman of Division of Organic Foodstuffs, is responsible for coordination of workpackage 2.3.2 (Influence of diet based on organic and conventional plant raw materials on rats) in the frame of subproject 2 (Effect of organic, “low input” and conventional production methods on food quality and safety, livestock and human health). Studies conducted in Poland comprise the assessment of organic, low-input and conventional plant raw materials quality (composition, bioactive substances content), quality of different feeds based on these materials and the influence of diet based on these feeds on physiological parameters of rats (body composition, hormones, immune system, fertility parameters, behaviour). It is now too early to publish any conclusions from this study, because many analyses are still in process. We hope to distribute some results at the end of 2008.