ORGANIC agriculture is a holistic production management system which upgrades and promotes the health of the agro-ecosystem, including biodiversity, biological cycles, and the biological activity of soil.
Besides ecological concerns, conventional agriculture has caused economic problems associated with over production of crops, increased costs of energy-based inputs and decreased farm incomes.
The approach of organic agriculture is to minimise the adverse impacts on the environments and is a real-time answer to climate change vulnerabilities.
Currently more than 90pc farmers are working on the conventional methods established during the green revolution of the 60’s era that gave better crop production. But inputs unluckily pollute the environment and contaminate human food along with underground water.
It is a fallacious assertion that organic farming cannot feed the entire population. By adapting organic agriculture technologies the need of chemical inputs can be gradually minimised. The use of organic products i.e. organic fertiliser, organic pesticides, organic herbicides and nutrients can reduce the capital investment and result in the better crop output for the sustainable livelihood of humans.
No doubt there are problems in both production as well as consumption/marketing. Barring some exceptions producers do not participate in organic agriculture either due to the lack of information or owing to lack of financial support.
There are marketing problems related to the supply of organic food, its promotion and distribution. Consumers are required to contact producers of organic products directly to obtain the product from specialised retail outlets and a limited number of supermarkets. They are not familiar with the specific attributes that distinguish organic products from non-organic ones, as well as their certification standards.
Prices of organic products are much higher. To replace the current mode of farming with organic farming, research infrastructure should be strengthened and organic certification system introduced.
There should be an alliance with international organisations to ensure food security and better livelihood for humans on the basis of sustainable organic agriculture. Rules and regulations should be formulated for the development of organic farming.
More than thirty farming organisations and small entrepreneurs are reportedly working in our country with the organic system of production/and mode of trading. The government needs to take the lead in developing incentive-based friendly policies for research and adoption of organic farming. All such efforts will ensure the safety of the environment and ecology under changing climates.
The organic system offers many opportunities despite the significant hurdles encountered in its start-up.
Published in Dawn, Business & Finance weekly, July 18th, 2016
