Jointly published with INRA, Paris.The application of new production methods in the food industry - genetic engineering in plants and animals - as well as recent crises over food-borne diseases have led consumers to a growing concern about science as an appropriate basis for developing sound agricultural policies. This book presents the discussion of scientists and politicians in the framework of an OECD programme conference on how to restore public trust in the application of new scientific achievements concerning food production.

Experts discuss the interface between agronomical science and policy: How can politics and science restore public trust in new food technologies?

I Ecotoxicology.- Soil Microbiota: a Gold Mine and a Minefield for Biotechnology.- Assessing Sources of Stress to Aquatic Ecosystems.- Transport of Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Microorganisms from Manure into Surface- and Groundwater.- Soil Biotests and Indicators.- II Nutrients.- Introductory Note.- Nitrogen: Recent Developments in Related Microbial Processes.- Rhizosphere and Mycorrhiza of Field Crops.- Coastal Eutrophication and Agriculture: Contributions and Solutions.- Reducing Nonpoint Source of Phosphorus Runoff from Poultry Manure with Aluminum Sulfate.- Precision Agriculture As a Tool for Sustainability.- III Managing Quality of Production.- Meat Quality and the Quality of Animal Production.- Prion Diseases: An Update.- Animal Welfare and Product Quality.- Biotechnology in Aquaculture.- IV Biotechnology.- Transgenic Crops: Recent Developments and Prospects.- Recombinant Proteins from Domestic Animals.- Cryopreservation of Mammalian Embryos.- Fungal Molecular Biology.- Panel on Production Systems.- V Beneficial Organisms.- Management of Soil Microbiota.- Biological Control of Plant Diseases.- Management of Pesticidal Crops.- GMO Releases in the Environment.- VI Ecosystems.- Soil Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning.- Linking Wetland Science to Policy: Meeting the Challenge with Special Reference to Water Quality Issues.- Global Distribution of Arable Land, Cereal Yields and Nitrogenous Fertilizer Use.- Panel on Managing Organisms and Ecosystems.- Final panel: Science, Policy Making and Society: Where do they Meet?.