Scope of the Journal
The scope of the Journal is described in the Journal’s “Statement of Policy”.
Pre-publication
Peer reviewed papers already accepted for publication or already published elsewhere (including the Internet) will not be accepted by the Editors.
Length of manuscript
Authors should normally not submit manuscripts that exceed 25 manuscript-pages (about 5000 words). Authors are strongly encouraged to submit shorter manuscripts that are just as well-documented and present the information clearly.
General preparation of the manuscript
Authors are to prepare their manuscripts with standard Microsoft Word processing software using the following font features:
During manuscript preparation, relevant tables, figures, and photographs are to be inserted by the author(s) at the appropriate position in the body of the text using appropriate insertion software. Titles and any explanatory legends are to be provided and are required to be placed immediately beneath each table, figure, or photograph present in the manuscript.
All manuscripts are expected to have an appropriate Title, have the names and addresses of each author and any co-authors, one of whom is to be identified as a contact-person for post-publication purposes. Each submitted manuscript should have an Abstract not exceeding one hundred words, an Introduction describing the topic and work reported, how the work was conducted (Materials and Methods), and the Results and Discussion of the investigation or review. Each manuscript should include Acknowledgements of funding sources, assistance from organizations, institutions, and named persons directly involved. The manuscript should conclude with a complete list of the References cited in the text, including any electronic citations from the Internet.
Title
The Title should be short and informative.
Abstract and Keywords
A short well-worded Abstract of approximately 100 words is required. Abstracts and keywords serve at least two purposes: they are informative of the main results and conclusions of the work-topic being reported; they are used by international abstracting services alerting a wider readership to recent publications in a number of relevant categories.
Introduction
The Introduction should clearly and fully set the scene as to why the research or review was conducted and is now being reported.
Materials and Methods
These should fully describe and give a detailed account of the procedures involved in the work being reported. This includes statistical procedures used in data processing.
Results and Discussion
Although Results relate only to the study or review being reported, the Discussion attempts to interpret their significance and relate them to the relevant published literature. This may usefully lead to a statement of what the authors have concluded.
References
Citations in the text are to follow the Harvard System, i.e., by author’s name and year of publication, e.g., (Smith 2004), followed by a complete reference-list at the end of the manuscript arranged in alphabetical order. Citations to books, monographs, and conference proceedings are to follow international publishing norms.
See:
http://libweb.anglia.ac.uk/guides/new_harvard.php
http://library.curtin.edu.au/referencing/harvard.pdf
Reviewing policy
All authors identified by name as co-authors are expected to have jointly agreed to submission of the manuscript. They are responsible for the correctness in presentation of the text, references and citation, and any tables and illustrations. Authors should endeavour to have their manuscript reviewed “in-house” before submission to the Editors.
Manuscripts can be forwarded directly to the Editors as a Word file and will be promptly acknowledged specifying its date of receipt:
Submitted papers will then normally be sent to at least two reviewers for constructive and confidential appraisal in order to meet an acceptable standard of publication. Normally the turn around-review time shall not exceed two months.
The Editors will then formally inform the author(s) whether the manuscript has been accepted for publication without change, is acceptable for publication with minor changes, may be acceptable for publication after revision, or is unacceptable for publication. The manuscript, along with any ancillary material originally submitted, will then be returned to the author(s), together with appropriate notes, comments and suggestions provided by the reviewers. Manuscripts submitted as a Word file enable reviewers to use tracking software and insert their comments and suggestions directly on the manuscript. By using this method, individual reviewers may choose to identify themselves to the author(s).
Manuscripts should conform to internationally recognised codes of nomenclature and measurement. Trade names that have been cited in the manuscript should be acknowledged as to their origin, but their use should not constitute product endorsement.
Editors, Journal of Organic Systems,
August, 2007.
Editorial Statement Policy
- The Editor(s) welcome the submission of manuscripts for publication in this journal. Topics are to be consistent with current principles of organic farming and its associated industries, especially those in Australia, New Zealand, Asia, and the Pacific Islands.
- Manuscripts submitted for publication are to be in English. They may be review articles of current organic industry activities, position papers that focus on a specific issue, accounts of processing and marketing developments, land-use methodologies in organic systems, and regulatory criteria.
- Manuscripts are to be submitted in electronic format, but hard-copy manuscripts can be accepted for review after prior consultation with the editors. Receipt of all submissions will be promptly acknowledged, normally by e-mail.
- Each valid manuscript will then be forwarded in confidence to selected reviewers to assess editorial acceptance for publication. Authors may also submit the names of possible reviewers who could then be approached for their assistance.
- All manuscripts undergoing confidential review will be judged on the relevance of their content, brevity and clarity of presentation, validity of methodology used and conclusions made, accuracy in data, analysis, and literature citations.
- On request, intending authors will receive the Journal guidelines on manuscript preparation. The guidelines will also be ordinarily available on the Journal’s website.
Neil Macgregor
Stuart Hill
14 February, 2006.