FondsGoetheanum: Agriculture

Demeter principles: more than just letting cows keep their horns

The biodynamic agriculture movement and other free initiatives, the Research Institute for Organic Agriculture (FiBL), and biodynamic farms and Demeter-partners all cooperate in various research projects concerning the future of agriculture. Results of the latest research are made available to all interested parties: 

  • Plant breeding and the treatment of seeds 
  • Animal breeding under consideration of the individual species' needs 
  • Cosmic rhythms and their effect on nature 
  • Long-term increase of the soil’s humus content, one of the desired effects being the absorption of excess CO2 in the soil (climate change) 
  • Ethical responsibility human beings have for nature 
  • Function of agriculture in the economic and social context 
  • Foodstuffs as "means for life", rich in content and taste 

In many ways, research into these areas benefits from the insights given by Rudolf Steiner in some of his lectures, especially those collected in the "Agricultural Course". This course provides the foundation for biodynamic agriculture.