New Zealand researchers defend ‘reductionist’ farm science

Traditional approaches are still needed, paper argues

A group of New Zealand scientists has published a defence of “reductionist” science in the face of a trend towards holistic approaches in agricultural research.

In a paper published on 24 January in the New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research, the scientists wrote that “reductionist science is certainly part of the pursuit of holistic solutions to problems, not least in transdisciplinary research”. They warned that the tag ‘reductionist’, referring to practices such as basic measurement and repeatability, has started to be used pejoratively.