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BC THE ORGANIC WAY by Marya Skrypiczajko
Food and agriculture policy throughout most of the world ensures that food remains cheap. Little focus is put on food safety, human health, worker welfare, family farms, biodiversity or the environment. Agricultural subsidy programs generally benefit the largest conventional farms because financial support is distributed according to sales. With this sort of policy, distribution is not fair and organic farmers lose out.
Slowly, a few countries are starting to bring an environmental component into their programs and organic agriculture can enjoy some financial and promotional benefits.
Currently, organic farmers in Europe are more fortunate than their Canadian counterparts when it comes to help from the government. European organic farmers benefit from pro-organic national and European Union government programs and spending, while Canadian agricultural policy directs almost every cent of its funding to conventional farming.
Since the early 1990s, several European nations have earmarked a part of their agriculture budget for organic initiatives. For example, the Netherlands and Sweden have been funding certification programs and subsidizing the costs for conventional farmers to convert their land to organic production. Then in 2003, the EU’s common agriculture policy increased the funding for agri-environmental subsidies which allows more European farmers to benefit from organic conversion subsidies, as well as receive payments for meeting strict environmental standards on their land.
In June 2004, the EU announced its action plan for organic farming which promotes organic agriculture by encouraging the purchase of organic food by large scale kitchens like hospitals and schools; by publicizing the positive benefits of organic food and agriculture; and by applying more widely the EU logo for organic foods. As well, it allocates Cdn. $130 million annually to research funding for organic agriculture and publicizes the results that prove organic farming and livestock raising is healthier for humans and better for the environment. That is four times the amount the rest of the world puts into organic agriculture.
In addition, organic farmers in individual European nations benefit from government subsidy programs that promote environmentally sensitive agriculture. Some countries such as England are implementing these programs after having seen the devastation of decades of chemical farming and other nations new to the EU see promoting organic agriculture as a way to develop a niche market within the European farming industry. With their lack of resources, they feel they would be at a disadvantage trying to compete with the conventional farming of other European nations, and at the same time, they see the boom in organic food sales in Western Europe as an opportunity.
Britain recently introduced an environmental stewardship scheme in which farmers are given up to 30 euros per hectare for protecting their land for the benefit of wildlife and to cut pollution. Money is given to farmers for looking after their hedgerows which are home to birds and small mammals, for creating wildflower plots to nourish bees and other insects, and for protecting ponds from pesticides and fertilizers. Many organic farmers already care for their land in this way so they will be immediately eligible for the funding.
Slovenia is one example of a new EU member which would like to take advantage of the organic sales boom in Western Europe by promoting organic agricultural development at home. As a part of its agri-enviro program, it is providing subsidies to farmers to prevent soil erosion, to preserve habitats of birds and animals, and to preserve traditional approaches to farming, as well as giving livestock breeders financial support to reduce flock density and to raise indigenous breeds.
Here in Canada, there is little financial support from the government for organic research projects, organic farmers do not receive any subsidies, and they must pay for their own organic certification. Traditional subsidy programs, which are rampant in the EU as well, help only some farmers, and often lead to over-production of certain crops and huge amounts of food waste.
If the health of our human population and that of the environment is a concern for the Canadian government, it should include more funding for organic agriculture. To help organic farmers, it could cover the cost of certification and fund the creation of an identifiable national organic label, which would make it easier for Canadians nationwide to know what products are organic and for farmers to sell their produce abroad.
To encourage the growth of the organic industry, the government could finance studies to understand the benefits of organic agriculture and educate the public on the results. As well, it could fund research to diversify organic production, educate conventional farmers on the merits of organic production and subsidize their conversion costs.
Marya Skrypiczajko is the author of BC the Organic Way – Where to Find Organic Food in British Columbia
www.bctheorganicway.com
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