UN forum focuses on organic access

Source: mediaglobal.org

OrganicPortal NewsRoom

Delegates and experts gathered in the German town of Nuremberg during 13-15 February to examine the impact trade standards have on the farming business in the developing world. The theme of this year’s event was a “Spotlight on India.”

With worldwide sales in organic products surpassing $59 billion in 2010, trade buyers were excited to learn about organic products from 83 countries represented at BioFach this year, with some 70 percent of the exhibitors traveling from abroad.

According to Oneco (Organic News Community), it has taken great strides on India’s part to become a player in organic agriculture and marketing – but it’s gaining speed. Many large-scale initiatives are being created, and India expects to­ reach a volume of exports equaling $1 billion dollars by 2015.

The BioFach 2012 forum attendees looked at issues related to organic agriculture in developing countries, including trade and access barriers.

Delegates also discussed the progress made in helping farmers expand their international market reach and overcoming technical roadblocks to organic marketing.

“Quite clearly, BioFach is now much more than a world-leading exhibition,” said Claus Rättich, member of the management board of Nürnberg Messe, site for the event. “BioFach stands for variety of products, countries and concepts…it is not just an important marketplace for certified organic products of the highest quality and a base for positioning companies and brands, but also a significant, innovative, and cosmopolitan event with international offshoots in Japan, USA, Brazil, China, and India.”

In 2002, a partnership between the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) first established a joint effort to promote access to the global organic market.

According to UNCTAD, there are about two million certified organic farmers worldwide, 80 percent of which are in developing countries. These countries account for 73 percent of land certified for organic beekeeping and the collection of plant products grown in the wild.

Such farming relies on healthy soils and active agro-ecological management instead of artificial pesticides and fertilizers, which can be detrimental to the environment, agricultural workers, and consumers.

One of the most pressing challenges for the improvement of organic agriculture is the red-tape in trade standards and regulations. A product that meets one set of organic certification standards may also need to be in compliance of another set of organic standards before it can reach the marketplace.

Key issues discussed included a panel discussion on “How Sustainable is Organic?” This panel asked the questions, “What is sustainability in the organic sector and how can it be measured and communicated?” and “Where is action still required – even in the organic sector?”

“The Council for Sustainable Development has certified organic farming as the gold standard,” said Markus Arbenz, executive director of IFOAM. “But we are not satisfied with this and must become more sustainable. How we in the sector can improve on this is discussed at this year’s edition of the world’s leading exhibition.”

Project activities included outreach to share knowledge about sustainability tools, pilot projects to test tools, and technical assistance to governments and private-sector stakeholders to implement the tools and related recommendations. It also included facilitation of new regional initiatives and analysis of the organic trade system and evaluation of the trade-facilitating tools.

Tip: OrganicPortal India - Organic Agriculture

OrganicPortal NewsRoom

23.02.2012

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