Organic farming by continent

Organic farming is practiced around the globe, but the markets for sale are strongest in North America and Europe, while the greatest dedicated area is accounted for by Australia, the greatest number of producers are in India, and the Falkland Islands record the highest share of agricultural land dedicated to organic production.

Organic farming by continent The following information is taken from the 2009 edition of the yearbook "The World of Organic Agriculture", published by the International Federation of Organic Movements IFOAM, the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture FiBL and the International Trade Centre ITC. According to the latest survey on organic agriculture, carried out by the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture FiBL and the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements IFOAM, organic agriculture is developing rapidly, and statistical information is now available from 141 countries of the world. Its share of agricultural land and farms continues to grow in many countries. The main results of the global survey on certified organic farming show that 32.2 million hectares of agricultural land are managed organically by more than 1.2 million producers, including smallholders (2007). In addition to the agricultural land, there are 0.4 million hectares of certified organic aquaculture. Global demand for organic products remains robust, with sales increasing by over five billion US Dollars a year. Organic Monitor estimates international sales to have reached 46.1 billion US Dollars in 2007 (WorldStats2009,FiBL, IFOAM, ITC 2009). Since global statistics have first been collated, Australia has reported more certified organic hectares than any other country. Australia currently accounts for 35 million certified organic hectares which is 54% of the world's certified organic agricultural land and 8.8% of Australia's agricultural land.

Africa Africa has 1.3 million hectares of organic agricultural land as of 2014. Even though Africa has the second largest land area of any continent, it has the smallest distribution of organic agricultural land at 3%. Much of Africa's organic agricultural activity is concentrated in East Africa and less in other countries. Within the continent, however, Uganda has the largest organic area (231,157 hectares) and the largest number of organic producers (189,610). Globally, Uganda has the second largest number of organic producers (190,552) – following India's 650,000. The East African Community (Uganda, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Tanzania) make up 35% of the African organic farming land. According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, "there is a growing recognition among policymakers that organic agricultural has a significant role to play in addressing food security issues, land degradation impacts, poverty alleviation and climate change in Africa." There is also economic incentive to pursue organic farming in Africa. North America and Europe make up a majority of consumer demand for organic products, with 97 percent of global revenues. The expectation is that African countries can tap into this growing market in industrialized countries through organic exports. Organic agricultural land in Africa has had relatively slow growth and does not have comparable infrastructure to more established organic systems in North America and Europe. Because of this, there is less data and consistent information around the regulation of organic agriculture in Africa. Tanzania offers an example of how organic farming is being managed in one East African country. Tanzania follows the East African Organic Product Standard, which was adopted by the East African Community in 2007. This is the official standard for organic agriculture production in the region as established by the United Nations Environment Program and the United Nations Conference for Trade and Development. By 2005 Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania had developed different organic standards. The East African Organic Product Standard was an attempt to alleviate challenges around market exclusion because of different criteria for organic products. Some of the standards that have been set include criteria around genetically modified organisms, social justice, crop production, animal husbandry and labelling. They also provide a "List of substances which may be used in organic plant production" and a "List of additives and processing aids for organic food processing." As of 2000, 45.1% of Tanzania's GDP was generated from agricultural activities and agricultural workers made up 84.4% of the country's total labor force. Even though many small-scale farmers in Tanzania practice traditional farming – where they use not inputs – they are not all certified and can't benefit from the price premiums associated with certified organic products. Of the products that are certified organic, most are exported to international markets. Of the organic producers selling outside of the country, their production includes coffee, cocoa, tea, spices, horticultural produce such as fruits and vegetables, cotton, maize, sesame, banana and cassava. Additionally, even though organic farming is mentioned in the 2006 Livestock Policy and 2013 Agriculture Policy, Tanzania's organic market is not regulated.

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