Here’s a farming trivia question for you: What do farming and war have in common?
If you can’t answer off the top of your head, don’t worry – you’re not alone. Most people rightly think of growing food to feed people as the opposite of waging war.
But a quick trip through history reveals an unsettling answer to our trivia question.
The trip begins around 8,000 years ago, when farmers first started using manure as a fertilizer to improve crop production. As time progressed, farmers discovered other fertilizers, like wood ash, bone meal and even fish.
Now, fast forward to the 1800s, when scientists figured out how to produce synthetic fertilizers. The first fertilizer factory was built in Germany in 1861, and farmers began using synthetic fertilizers for the first time.
When World War I ended in 1918, weapons factories became fertilizer factories. Methods used for producing nitric acid for weapons can also be used to produce… nitrogen fertilizer.
By the early 1920s, farmers using these chemical fertilizers were noticing a decrease in the health and fertility of their farms. Concerned, a group of them approached Rudolf Steiner, a prominent thinker known for his holistic approach to challenging issues.
Steiner developed the ideas that became the foundation for biodynamic farming, which views the farm as an organism rather than a factory, respecting the interconnectedness of soil, plants and animals and their dependence on natural cycles.
Biodynamic farming focuses on nurturing the health of the soil as the foundation of life.
Farmers began to implement this approach in the 1920s, but it was only a small minority of them. Many more farmers got swept up in the chemical farming revolution.
After World War II, with even more factories needing a market for their products, the use of chemical fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides exploded, depleting soils, harming biodiversity and making farmers dependent on chemical companies.
Today, almost a century later, biodynamic farming is more relevant than ever.
Biodynamic farming regenerates soils degraded by chemicals, drawing carbon from the atmosphere and storing it into the ground, restoring life and vitality not only to our soils, but also to our foods and our planet.
The Biodynamic Farm as a Living Organism
In an age of mechanized chemical farming, the biodynamic approach is revolutionary. Rather than focusing solely on the number of crops that can be harvested from a field, biodynamic farmers focus on the health of the soil.
A biodynamic farmer aims for regeneration, treating the entire farm as a living organism, with plants, animals, insects, soil and soil organisms all respected for the part they play.
Think organic but better… While biodynamic farmers reject synthetic fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides, that’s just the beginning of their methods. They also employ:
- Plant Diversity
Having a wide variety of plants above ground results in greater diversity of microorganisms found below ground that add nutrients to the soil. This in turn nurtures the plant, bringing in pollinators, like bees and butterflies, and other wildlife.
- Crop Rotation & Cover Crops
Crop rotation and cover crops work together to nourish and protect the soil from the elements, like rain, wind, pests and diseases, preventing erosion and creating better water retention for plant growth.
- Livestock Integration
Free-roaming livestock on the pasture not only supports animal welfare but also ensures easy, balanced distribution of manure, promoting necessary microbe diversity and soil health.
- Low-Till Practices
Minimal tilling ensures low-soil disturbance, allowing roots and microbes to thrive without use of fertilizers and pesticides. It also limits the release of carbon emissions into the atmosphere.
Standard tilling, performed by machines that turn the soil over, kills microorganisms in the soil, making it less nutritious for plant growth, which results in a greater need for fertilizers and pesticides. The bare soil from this routine practice also contributes to the release of carbon emissions into the atmosphere.
- Holistic Pest & Disease Control
Instead of synthetic pesticides, insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, hormones or GMOs, biodynamic farming implements holistic measures to ensure crop health, like encouraging balanced predator-prey relationships and focusing on soil quality for whole-farm prosperity.
Managed within the gentle natural cycles of nature, the biodynamic farm is handled with the goal of making the farm completely self-sustaining, with all inputs – such as fertilizers, pest control, weed control and water – coming from within the farm itself.
In modern chemical farming, nutrients like nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus are trucked in, measured out and applied to fields. But they can have significant negative effects on biodiversity. Application of the industrial forms of these nutrients tends to destroy the natural soil life that can fix nitrogen from the air and potassium and phosphorus from the soil.
Biodynamic farms, on the other hand, protect these natural processes by nurturing the soil, so it can regenerate soil biodiversity and naturally produce needed plant nutrients.
For example, legumes can fix nitrogen from the air. Live soil – filled with bacteria, earthworms and microorganisms – can release potassium and phosphorus into the soil.
These earth-conscious practices lead to strong, disease-resistant plants with nutrient-rich crops while encouraging biodiversity throughout the farm.
Demeter Certified Biodynamic® vs. Organic – What’s the Difference?
The Demeter standard was established in 1928 by the Demeter Association, which was formed to perpetuate and protect the principles of biodynamic farming.
Established at the beginning of the modern sustainable agriculture movement, it’s the world’s oldest ecological certification organization. Today, it sets standards for the Biodynamic® brand and includes a network of certification organizations in 45 countries.
Demeter is well known within Europe. In fact, a full 10% of German organic farmland is Demeter Certified Biodynamic®.
So, how does biodynamic compare to organic?
There are a few of similarities and several differences, which you can see in the comparative chart below. The bottom line is…
While organic standards avoid synthetic fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides, a lot of organic farms still follow conventional patterns, importing their organic fertilizers from off the farm. Biodynamic farming, in contrast, aims to maximize soil fertility and make a farm completely self-sustaining, with all inputs coming from within the individual farm.
Biodynamic farming is a type of “regenerative organic” approach to farming because it aims to regenerate the natural fertility and biodiversity that has been destroyed by modern agricultural methods.
It’s important to note that many organic farmers recognize the importance of caring for their soil and may already be practicing any number of the biodynamic methods.
| No limits on importing organic fertilizers from outside the farm |
Focused on the goal of producing nutrient-rich fertilizer within the farm. Only a limited amount of fertilizer can be imported, and it must be Demeter Certified Biodynamic® |
| Allows imported organic pesticides |
Manages pests by creating a biologically diverse habitat that encourages balanced predator-prey relationships |
| Does not require the use of livestock |
Requires the integration of livestock to improve soils and help generate fertilizer within the farm |
| Does not require crop rotation |
Requires crop rotation and intensive use of cover crops (called “green manure”) to pull carbon from the air and add nutrients to the soil |
| Organic feed for livestock can come from anywhere in the world |
At least 50% of livestock feed must be grown on the farm, with the rest required to be organic or biodynamic |
| Standard requiring farmers to “conserve biodiversity” can be poorly enforced, leading to the reality of monoculture in practice |
Requires that a minimum of 10% of total farm acreage be set aside for biodiversity |
| Focused on how crops are treated, this standard allows for only one section of a farm to be certified, raising the potential for cross-contamination |
Focused on treating the whole farm as a living organism, this standard requires that the whole farm be certified |
| Product certification focuses mainly on ingredients used |
Product certification uses 12 Biodynamic® processing standards so the agricultural ingredients used define the product |
Transform Your Plate with Biodynamic® Pastas
Exclusively produced from durum wheat grown in the fertile Lombardy region of Northern Italy, Solspring® pastas pair perfectly with delicious Solspring® pasta sauces.
The fields in these abundant agricultural regions have specialized in growing wheat for hundreds of years. Once harvested, it is ground into semolina flour by an expert milling facility in Northern Italy that has pioneered the adoption of regenerative organic practices.
Our Solspring® Biodynamic® Pastas are bronze-drawn, a process which produces pasta of superior quality. Here’s how it works…
Pasta is made by pressing dough through a “die,” a specialized metal tool for molding dough into a shape. For example, a ribbed half-circle for making shell pasta.
Modern pasta dies are typically made with either Teflon or bronze. A Teflon die creates smooth noodles that are slippery when cooked. A traditional bronze die, on the other hand, turns out pasta with a rougher texture.
It’s this rougher, more porous texture that makes bronze-drawn pasta superior, as it provides a better surface that allows sauces to cling to the noodles for a perfect bite every time.
Solspring® Biodynamic® Pastas are offered in several classic bronze-drawn shapes, including two options that are enhanced with turmeric or spirulina:
- Penne Durum Wheat Pasta
- Penne Durum Wheat Pasta with Turmeric
- Angel Hair Durum Wheat Pasta
- Tagliatelle Durum Wheat Pasta with Spirulina
These hearty Solspring® Pastas contain 6 to 8 grams of protein with no added sodium or preservatives.
Inspire Seconds with Biodynamic Flavors and Real Italian Ingredients from Solspring®
While modern industrial farming methods created an explosion in crop yields around the world, several decades of this approach have proven disastrous for soil fertility and food nutrient content.
It’s clear that regenerative farming is the hope of the future. By eating biodynamic, we make a clear statement that we value the earth. We support farmers who are working to live in harmony with the earth and its natural cycles. And we do our small part to encourage biodiversity, and feed the soil that feeds us.
Solspring® Biodynamic® Pastas and Sauces are part of this mission to regenerate life in the soil to create better, flavorful food without compromise – bringing the tastes of Italy into your home with only real, straightforward ingredients.
Be part of the biodynamic revolution, and start crafting your own culinary masterpieces today with Solspring® Biodynamic® foods.