COFEE and flower growers seem to be ready to embrace organic farming and give up conventional agricultural practices that use synthetic pesticides and watersoluble synthetically purified fertilizers.
This comes after decades of conventional
agriculture that has seen coffee production, the typical cash crop in
Kilimanjaro and Arusha regions drop in quality as well as quantity.
Kilimanjaro growers underwent extensive
training here in order to acquaint themselves with the new form of
agriculture that was introduced and campaigned for in the 20th century.
A coffee grower from Mwika Kinyamvua
Agricultural Marketing Co-operative Society (AMCOS), Mr Israel Kombe
gave testimony to the effect that since he started organic farming
productivity has gone high, fetching better prices in the market due to
its quality.
“It is high time now we all abandoned
conventional farming and go for organic one. I for one have already
started and wish others to do the same so that they get huge yield but
also it is for the sake of the environment,” says Mr Kombe.
A flower farmer from Hai District, Ms
Alicia Godwin notes that with the climate change effects, unproductive
trend in the sector and to be on course in safeguarding the environment,
she has decided to jump in organic farming.
In organic farming the production system
sustains the health of soils, ecosystems and people. It relies on
ecological processes, biodiversity and cycles adapted to local
conditions, rather than the use of inputs with adverse effects.
Organic farmers are restricted by
regulations to using natural pesticides and fertilizers. An example of a
natural pesticide is pyrethrin, which is found naturally in the
chrysanthemum flower. It is an alternative agricultural system that was
initiated in reaction to rapidly changing farming practices.
Organic agriculture continues to be
developed by various organic agriculture organizations today. The system
relies on fertilizers of organic origin such as compost, manure, green
manure and bone meal and places emphasis on techniques such as crop
rotation and companion planting.
Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS) along
with Ardhi University (ARU) and the United Nations Environment Agency
(UNEP) are in the campaign and have been with growers to see to it that
they go organic.
TBS Acting Director General, Dr Egid
Mubofu tells farmers they have to observe the required quality and
standards if Tanzania is to realize industrialisation that is being
advocated for by the Fifth Phase Government.
Dr Mubofu says the spirit would lead to
productivity and strengthen the national economy. He says farmers should
stop ‘business as usual’, because it is wastage of resources.
He says TBS is ready to offer expertise
on how its stakeholders, specifically coffee and flower growers, could
benefit by applying required techniques that would give them more yield
in quality and quantity, boosting individual and national economy.
He notes that the industrialisation
concept would remain a dream if farmers were not committed in
productivity and calls upon them to focus on sustainable quality
production centered on environmental conservation.
“The main emphasis in Tanzania now is to
establish and industrialised country. I hope you would agree with me
that the whole concept cannot be realized if productivity is not
maintained in agriculture,” says Dr Mubofu.
He wants more people to engage in
agricultural activities as that is an integral part in producing raw
materials for the said industries, saying it would act as a catalyst for
investor to start up industries, create employment, increase exports
and minimize imports.
He says apart from organic agriculture
bringing multiple benefits to stakeholders and the country generally,
use of foods raised by chemical inputs have affects negatively health of
individuals.
“The first effects of the chemicals is
to the very environment they are used on, as remaining chemicals degrade
the environment,” says Dr Mubofu who has been a lecturer at University
of Dar es Salaam (UDSM), Chemistry Department.
He says crops produced conventionally
remain with some percentage of chemicals, meaning the quality is not on
the required standard hence lack markets. He is thankful on the way UNEP
supports efforts to raise awareness on benefits of organic farming,
this time round targeting 50 participants from co-operative societies
willing to engage in such agricultural practice.
UNEP Country Coordinator, Ms Clara
Makenya says they support to build farmers’ capacity so that they
realise importance of productivity in agriculture but at the same time
ensure they avoid environmental degradation.
“Apart from the adverse effect the
chemicals have on the quality of crop produced, they remain in the soil
and go forth to water sources so that users of the precious liquid are
affected health wise,” says Ms Makenya.
She says UNEP works close with TBS and
other stakeholders to see to it that sustainability in standards of
goods, including crops is maintained but at the same time ensure
environment is safeguarded to mitigate climate change effects and stop
global warming and production of unwanted gases.
“Under this project UNEP manages and
intensifies efforts in coming up with plans to produce quality goods in
ways that are friendly to the environment so as to strengthen
sustainability in make up and use of resources.
We have come up with eco-labelling,” she
says. Eco-labelling is a method of environmental performance
certification and labelling that is practised around the world. An
ecolabel identifies products or services proven environmentally
preferable overall, within a specific product or service category.
In contrast to ‘green’ symbols or claim
statements developed by manufacturers and service providers, the most
credible labels are awarded by an impartial third party for specific
products or services that have been independently determined to meet
transparent environmental leadership criteria, based on life-cycle
considerations.
The roots of ecolabelling are found in
the growing global concern for environmental protection on the part of
governments, businesses and the public.
As businesses have come to recognize
that environmental concerns may be translated into a market advantage
for certain products and services, various environmental declarations,
claims and labels have emerged, such as natural, recyclable,
eco-friendly, low energy, recycled and content.
These have attracted consumers looking
for ways to reduce environmental impacts through their purchasing
choices, but they have also led to some confusion and skepticism.
Unproven or irrelevant claims have been branded ‘greenwash’.
Organic agricultural methods are
internationally regulated and legally enforced by many nations, based in
large part on the standards set by the International Federation of
Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM).
That is an international umbrella
organization for organic farming organizations established in 1972.
Organic agriculture, with rare exceptions, prohibits synthetic
pesticides, antibiotics, synthetic fertilizers, genetically modified
organisms and growth hormones.
Since 1990 the market for organic food
and other products has grown rapidly, reaching 63 billion dollars
worldwide in 2012. The demand has driven a similar increase in
organically managed farmland that grew from 2001 to 2011 at a
compounding rate of 8.9 percent per annum.
As of 2011, approximately 37,000,000
hectares worldwide were farmed organically, representing approximately
0.9 percent of total world farmland.
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