Organic bodies – certifiers, national agencies and associations – must do more to improve access to certification, reduce its costs, and target areas where accessing markets is too difficult or costly for individual farmers.
That’s one of the main conclusions of a new study into the global distribution of organic crop producers.
The researchers behind the study used publicly accessible registries of organic crop farmers to map their distribution globally. They show that organic crop farmers are mostly present in areas with favourable socio-economic and climate conditions – globally, but also within countries.
Within developed countries, the locations of organic crop farmers often do not differ significantly from the locations of conventional crop farmers, the study finds. In developing countries, however, there are large differences, with organic growers typically concentrated in more accessible and developed regions (particularly areas close to urban centres).
The researchers note that conversion to organic in developing countries may present fewer obstacles than in developed regions, not least because “agriculture can be organic by default, but not yet certified”. Therefore, conversion to organic farming in such conditions can “be merely a continuation of existing cropland management, fertilisation and pest control”.
Moving these farmers into certified organic systems would, say the researchers, help optimise farm operations, open up new markets for producers and increase margins. A key goal then for the international organic movement, they say, should be to develop more efficient access to certification, reduce its costs and target areas where accessing markets is too costly or difficult for individual farmers.
Photo: Vegetable farmer watering plants at the organic farm in Boung Phao Village, Lao PDR. Asian Development Bank