The Hindu Business Line : `Organic farming can raise growers income'

EVOLVING a comprehensive policy for promoting organic farming in the country could improve the income of farmers apart from reversing ecological degradation and ensuring food security.

Organic agriculture offers the most "comprehensive response to the sustainability problem facing agriculture and our food production system today," according to Dr Prabha Mahale, World Board Member, IFOAM, an international organisation promoting organic farming worldwide. Participating at the two-day policy workshop here on `Organic Sustainability of Kerala - A Global Model', she said organic production had the potential to produce sufficient quantities of high quality nutritious food. The biggest sales of organic produce are still fresh fruit and vegetables and the trend is steadily moving towards processed foods.

However, intra-Asian trade of organic products was still underdeveloped. The most lucrative markets in the Asian region were Japan followed by Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong. Organic markets are also picking up in China and the Republic of Korea, she added.

Along side the export market, the domestic market in India holds good prospect for the development of the organic sector and could provide best opportunities for farmers. "The Government must develop the domestic market through consumer awareness campaign".

"We have to take prosperity to the farmers who are in dire straits," Dr Subash Mehta, FAO Consultant, told Business Line.

According to him, at present, Rs 1,000 crore is being doled-out as subsidy and it is neither helping the farmer nor the consumers. According to Dr Bhatia instead of labelling organic products as organic, "what is not organic need to be controlled and labelled".

By the year 2010, the world organic market size is projected at $46 billion in the EU, $45 billion in the US and $11 billion in Japan. In the US, organic food sales is expected to reach $20 billion by 2005 as per the study carried out by the National Marketing and Organic Trade Association, USA, in 2001, Dr C.K. George, Advisor, Organic Agriculture Products and Export division of the Peermedu Development Society (PDS), said.

Most of the consumers, he said, who are aware of the advantages of organic farming are willing to pay a certain price premium for organic foods. In many countries, the premium is 20 to 25 per cent. For fruits and vegetables, the premium price ranges between 20 to 40 per cent above conventional prices. "But, there are instances where more than 100 per cent price premium is obtained for certain products like spices when there is scarcity in the market," Dr George, who is also the Executive Director, Spices Board, said. India has already established a name in supplying quality organic tea, spices and processed fruits such as pineapple and banana and cotton to US and Europe.

According to him, organic farming and agri-business in India is expected to receive a major boost following a series of initiatives taken by the Government.

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