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Short abstract:

This paper examines permaculture and biodynamic farming as examples of refused knowledge. A recent public controversy in Italy allow to concentrate on online sources for highlighting retorical strategies used by supporters of these alternatives forms of, allegedly, sustainable food production.

Long abstract:

This paper examines permaculture and biodynamic farming as examples of refused knowledge in the realm of sustainability and food production in Italy. While proponents of these methodologies emphasize their ecological and sustainable principles, they have faced criticism for being pseudoscientific due to their reliance on unproven concepts and methodologies. Biodynamic agriculture, rooted in Rudolf Steiner's teachings, emphasizes the integration of farming with cosmic forces, including astrological and lunar cycles, and the use of specific preparations to enhance soil fertility. Permaculture, in contrast, is a design system that aims to create sustainable human settlements by emulating natural ecosystems, focusing on principles such as diversity, interdependence, and self-sufficiency. However, the scientific foundation of permaculture has been criticized for lacking rigorous experimental validation and relying heavily on anecdotal evidence.

Despite the criticisms, both biodynamic farming and permaculture have gained popularity among farmers and consumers seeking sustainable alternatives to conventional farming. Using a content analysis of selected websites, YouTube videos, and other media sources from Italy, this study adopts an agnostic perspective to analyze the rhetorical strategies, mobilized resources, and framing employed by supporters to counter skepticism. In Italy, controversies arose when the inclusion of biodynamic farming in organic agriculture was debated in Parliament. As STS scholarship about controversies taught us, the public debate on this topic is an unvaluable opportunity to enrich the analysis.

In doing so these case studies contribute to expanding debates on refused knowledge and the discourse surrounding sustainability amidst ecological crisis.