STRONG
QC & QA
53
JUL 2017 FOOD FOCUSTHAILAND
As organic farming is soil related, you need to
acquireor rentanagricultural land inorder tobecome
an organic farmer. Organic production requires
commitment and knowledge, therefore it is
recommended tohavesome training for this typeof
agriculture.
Organic farming isanoverall system tomanage
a farm and produce food, while ensuring the
following: best environmental practices, high level
ofbiodiversity, thepreservationofnatural resources,
high animal welfare standards. These are themain
principles that have to be translated into concrete
production methods such as multi-annual crop
rotations, theuseof livestockmanureas a fertiliser
and growing onlywhat the farm can naturally yield.
It is also essential to encourage natural resistance
topestsanddiseases inbothcropsand livestock. It
isencouraged tohavesuitablehabitats for thebenefit
of theanimals tohelpcontrol pests inanaturalway.
It isalso important toprovideaccess toquality feed
and free-rangepasture tomaintain thehealthof the
animals.
BeforeStarting theOrganicActivity
Before starting the organic activity, the competent
agriculturalauthority in theMemberStatecanprovide
information which support measures are available
and give advice in general. It is also important to
contact a control body of organic farming in the
respective Member State. They can provide more
detailed information for the particular segment of
organic farming youareplanning toengage in. The
control bodies are entitled to run control on each
organic farmand investigatewhether theproduction
is according to the standards. Organic farmers are
controlled once a year tomake sure that the rules
are respectedand if theyare, theproductsmaybear
the organic logo of theEuropeanUnion. There are
two years of conversion period in organic farming
before a product can bemarketedas organic.
Bothpaper ande-certificationwill beused
duringa6-months transitionperiod.
As of 19October 2017,
organic importswill becovered
onlyby e-certification.
References
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become-an-organic-producer_en
