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Editor’s Note:
AgroPages’ forthcoming publication, entitled, Organic Farming 2022, we will highlight the relatively advanced administration system in developed European countries and the United States , and individualized Australian and Japanese governance, as well as gaps in emerging markets. If you have any related insights or comments and suggestions on regulatory administration, please contact us.
Organic farming began in the United Kingdom and the US in the early 20th century. Different countries and regions have different features, in terms of origins, evolution, market operations, organic certification and incentive policies.
In 1990, the world’s largest international organic product trade fair, BIOFACH, was launched in Germany. In the same year, the National Organic Farming Program (NOP) was established in the US, along with the adoption of organic farming-oriented acts that served to guide and regulate the development of organic farming in the country. In 1991, the European Union implemented its organic farming policy, the world’s first regional organic farming-related regulation that established a regulatory foundation for EU member states and helped promote organic farming-oriented trade exchanges inclusive of trade activities within the EU. Meanwhile, EC regulation also greatly facilitated organic farming legislation in other countries and regions. Subsequently, the international market gradually emerged, and organic product certifications and market operation became the main driving force of the development of organic farming. Since the 21st century, international exchanges in organic farming have become more frequent, and organic trade exchanges have become more intense.
United States: Multidisciplinary collaborations in organic farming
The US organic farming system and policy development, are characterized by the multidisciplinary collaboration between every government department, all of whom operate within their assigned authorities.
The USDA has delegated its National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) to manage the administration of organic farming in the United States. The Department of Agricultural Market Service launched a National Organic Farming Program (NOP), which is responsible for drafting organic standards, organic farming regulations and organic certifications, as well as guiding farmers and manufacturers in filing certification and drafting import and export policies for organic farm products. As part of the policies, the organic certification fee plan will directly subsidize 75% of the certification fee to favor farmers and manufacturers that file for organic certification.
The Environmental Incentive Program for Organic Agriculture of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) provides organic product growers with guidance and technical services, and will offer financing support to those converting to organic farming, worth up to a maximum amount of $20,000 per year, to help farmers in their conversion.
The Economic Research Service is responsible for the census of organic farming and its related industries, as well as for surveying and studying organic farming and processing, regional deployment and product sales, and sharing information regarding organic farming.
The Risk Management Agency offers services to organic product growers or organic farming conversion covering natural disasters, insect pests, diseases and crop insurance, as well as an appropriate insurance compensation level in line with the price levels of their organic products, to protect the interests of organic product growers.
The Agricultural Extension Service is responsible for teaching agrotechnical knowledge and agricultural practices. The training activities will be mostly based upon internet lecturing and the publication of papers, as well as other means, such as the organic product growers with access to expert online technical guidance.
The organic farming system and policy-making process in the US bring together multi-sectoral coordination from the start to the end of the chain, so farmers engaged in organic farming are aware of where to go and what to do when they encounter problems, whether in the production process, certification process or a query about agricultural subsidies, which can all be effectively identified and solved.
European Union: Establishing rules and standards for management of organic farming
In 1991, organic farming began in the EU, which released the first organic farming regulation. Since then, many EU member states have established organic standards and instilled organic farming as a state policy. In 2007, the EU released and revised a number of regulations, having gradually improved its organic farming policy and confirmed the purposes, goals and principles of organic farming. The EU Council implemented two polcies detailing organic farming-oriented rules for the production and labeling of agricultural products, as well as for control and import provisions, which apply to organic products sold within the EU. In February 2012, the EU and the US agreed to a mutual recognition agreement covering organic standards. In May 2018, the EC Regulation was revised for the second time, reflecting the basic trends of organic farming regulations in the EU, which is the gradual move towards the purpose and common goal of organic farming rather than a short-term approach.
EU member Germany has implemented a distinctive direct subsidy policy. Since 1992, the German government has been allocating annual fiscal funds to support the development of organic farming in every German state. From 2014 to 2020, the German government has allocated a total of €4.8 billion in direct subsidies. Organic farms receive a subsidy of €150 to €300 per hectare, and in addition to the government subsidy, a sum of certification fee of €530 is provided by government to each organic farm every year.
Australia and Japan: Developing an organic farming plan fit to local conditions
Australia has the largest organic farming area in the world, and its organic products are exported to various countries and regions. Australia’s organic farming practices are reflected in three dimensions, which are robust technical research, precision support to producers and international market development. Since 2016, Australia has achieved significant research successes in the fields of low-carbon agriculture, plant health and sustainable agricultural development, therefore, becoming a very influential country in organic farming.
As well as subsidies available to small farms, the Australian government has asked large-scale organic farming industry organizations, such as the National Association for Sustainable Agriculture, Australia (NASAA) and the Biological Farmers of Australia (BFA), to supervise the organic cultivation, production and marketing of organic products from small farms.
Organic farming in Japan only began to become popular in the 1960s in the form of a social movement. Through analyses of relevant standards, policies and organic farming experiences in Europe and the US, Japanese scholars have reached a consensus that focus should be placed on improving production technology. The Japanese government has asked all prefectures to correctly understand and adopt organic farming methods according to local conditions. However, Japan is not a major organic farming country, with an organic farming area of only 10,043 hectares and organic product market share accounting for only 0.4% of the country’s agricultural product market.
Emerging markets: Strengthening system regulations to create a differentiated development model
Organic farming in developed countries, such as European countries and the US, has experienced decades of development that began with folk farming. Folk growers and producers began organic farming from the perspectives of ecological protection, improving product quality and establishing sustainable agriculture, which has later developed into organic product production, certification and regulatory administration. As the organic product market in developed countries, such as European countries and the US, started earlier, the system is relatively well-established, with sound market growth and high integrity.
The organic product market in emerging markets, including China, started late, so specialized marketing channels and platforms are not running as satisfactorily. The promotion of organic farming, as well as product conception and product marketing, are not adequate, combined with the presence of a small number of illegal certifications of “problematic organic products” that are affecting the credibility of organic products. Therefore, consumers are losing trust and confidence. It is important for the market to be regulated when it is developing slowly.
The development of organic farming, system regulation and organic certification are currently top priorities. When formulating and revising organic standards, regulatory bodies in the emerging organic product markets, such as China, must learn from the advanced experiences of European countries and the US, as well as listen to the opinions of stakeholders in the industrial chain, especially those of major business players, which can be useful references for policymaking. On the other hand, the technical levels of agricultural production and government governance in different countries and regions are not the same. Therefore, it is important to shape a differentiated development model that considers individual advantages and disadvantages, to play a role in the global organic product market.
Organic products are not simply “certified” but are actually produced. Only by continuously updating laws, regulations and technical standards can the positive cycling of supervision, production consumption be achieved, which will contribute to the sustainable and healthy development of the organic farming industry.
If you have any related insights or suggestions on regulatory administration, welcome to write to me for more in-depth conversations.
Liao Wang
Email: wang@agropages.com
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