The Promise of Organic Farming
Challenges and opportunities for sustainable agriculture
Consumers' concern with food quality and safety, as well as the protection of the environment, were the first to stimulate demand for organic products, and have become the driving force in the development of organic agriculture, particularly in industrialized countries. Governments have responded by setting targets for the expansion of organic production, and new market opportunities have developed as part of the strategy to address such concerns.
In most Asian countries, however, the area under organic production is still very low compared with those of industrialized countries. With Asia accounting for more than half of the world's population but with only one-third of the world's farmland, there is a need to integrate past and present practices to find new ways to meet increasing food demand.
Organic Agriculture in Asia
Asian governments have recently become interested in organic farming with the expansion of the market for organic products and their potential for promoting sustainable agriculture. Accordingly, almost all have put priority on organic certification and accreditation, even though the major constraints in organic farming in Asia are still at the level of farm production. The proliferation of public organic standards and inspection systems, however, seems to have caused confusion among Asian traders of organic products. Hence, international harmonization of these standards and systems need to be advocated.
Technology for Improving Farm Productivity
The important role of research and development is well recognized in terms of providing the technology to enhance farm productivity, such as in the areas of plant protection using new biological tools and methods, soil management and organic fertilization, genetics and breeding to obtain natural resistance and to overcome biological stress, etc.
Many conventional farmers consider converting to organic farming due to the rapidly growing market for organic products and the prospect of higher prices. However, they are also aware that organic farming may entail some constraints and possibly higher costs, and are therefore unsure whether they will be economically better off in the end if they convert. Economic and financial evaluation may help them make a better assessment of the profitability of conversion. In this regard, the most important economic parameters that should be analyzed are: 1) possible fall in yields (with the possibility of recovery later); 2) difference in production costs (labor costs tend to increase in particular); and 3) price difference (organic prices tend to be higher, but not always).
While all these parameters vary over time, which implies that various scenarios should be considered, a crucial factor here is the availability of information and technology to ensure farm productivity and to cushion farmers from the impact of conversion.
Distribution and Marketing
In most major organic product markets such as the industrialized countries, demand for organic products far outstrips domestic supply, and therefore imports are required to fill the gap. This represents a major opportunity for developing countries in Asia, but marketing and distribution appear to be a major constraint for small-scale farmers. Another issue is meeting the demanding quality and safety standards of major markets.
In many countries in the region, many factors contribute to additional costs in marketing the products: inspection and certification fees, segregated storage, fewer options to control post-harvest pests and diseases, need for careful handling to avoid dilution and contamination, appropriate packaging and labeling, and economies of scale. Organic producers comprise a smaller proportion of the agricultural industry with individual producers being usually small-scale and widely dispersed. Hence, more and more small-scale farms will need to form themselves into production and marketing teams to enlarge the scale of production and marketing.
Regulation and Certification
In recent years, an expanding number of governmental regulations for organic products have developed worldwide in parallel with private systems. However, while the purpose of certification is to foster confidence of consumers and to enhance trade in organic products, the certification requirements and regulations today are becoming a major obstacle to the development of the organic industry, especially in the developing countries.
There is undoubtedly a need for harmonization of organic guarantee systems not only between the private and public sectors, but among countries and markets of the world to sustain and further enhance trade in organic products and the livelihood that this trade supports. A better understanding of the appropriate roles for government and private bodies in standard setting, certification and accreditation is required. An international mechanism for establishing equivalence among these systems is regarded as the best approach to the problem, one that respects diversity in organic agricultural systems and where variations in standards are allowed where appropriate.
Major Issues and Recommendations
Major issues confronting the production and marketing of organic products in Asian countries were identified during the seminar. The issues have been summarized as follows:
- 1. Need for greater awareness among producers and consumers
- Awareness of organic farming/products could be enhanced through appropriate research and extension programs, as well as, educational/training and promotional activities.
- 2. Government policy and program support
- To spur growth of the organic industry, especially, in the developing countries, there is a need for government to place higher priority on organic farming. To achieve this, relevant data on the impact of organic farming on the environment and people's welfare, as well as, its role in sustainable agriculture should be generated and disseminated for better appreciation, particularly, by policy-makers.
- 3. Production and postharvest
- To improve production of organic products there is a need to intensify research and development (R&D), undertake training/education of extension workers/farmers to enhance their technical know-how and improve farmers' access to the required inputs. Due to expected/possible decline in yield during the conversion period, there is a need also to provide some form of support or incentive to affected farmers. Infrastructure support including postharvest facilities for organic farming should also be provided.
- 4. Marketing and promotion
- There is also a need to develop appropriate marketing channels for organic produce, including the establishment of direct links between producers and consumers. In this regard, innovative forms of marketing should be explored such as on-farm marketing and agro-tourism. As part of the marketing promotion effort, consumer education should also be undertaken.
- 5. Certification and regulation
- Most of the countries felt the need to strengthen their certification and regulation of organic products. There is a need to harmonize the standards for organic production and for this purpose the establishment of a regional accreditation organization is suggested. Another aspect is the need to promote awareness of the standards and regulations among the various stakeholders. The third is the need to improve access to the certification system considering that accreditation can be very costly, especially, for small farmers/producers.
- 6. Information exchange
- In order to stimulate further the growth of an organic food industry in the region there is a need to establish/strengthen linkages/networking among countries in the region. In this regard, it is suggested that sharing of experiences and best practices on organic farming should be fast tracked through relevant networks and media.
Index of Images
Figure 1 Organic Vegetable Marketing in Indonesia
Figure 2 Organic Tea Farm in Vietnam
