NEW DELHI: Organic farmers in developing countries like India will have greater access to world markets with the recently launched tools that would help ease trade in organic agriculture products, a UN body said.
With organic trade expanding at the rate of 15-20 per cent per year, the new tools - Equitool and International Requirements for Organic Certification Bodies (IROCB) - will help streamline acceptance of products that are traded internationally, Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said on it website.
Equitool is a guide to help decision-makers assess whether an organic production and processing standard applicable in one region of the world is equivalent, ie not identical but equally valid, to another organic standard. This tool facilitates trade while also safeguarding organic production according to local socio-economic and agro-ecological conditions, FAO said.
The second tool, IROCB is a minimum set of performance requirements for organic certification bodies that will enable import of products certified under foreign control systems.
According to FAO, more than 100 countries export certified organic products. But international organic trade is hindered by a multitude of standards, regulations and conformity assessment systems.
Noting on the current organic trade situation, the UN body said that products certified as organic under one system are not easily recognised as organic under another. This causes major headaches and costs for organic producers and exporters wishing to sell in different markets.
With organic trade expanding at the rate of 15-20 per cent per year, the new tools - Equitool and International Requirements for Organic Certification Bodies (IROCB) - will help streamline acceptance of products that are traded internationally, Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said on it website.
Equitool is a guide to help decision-makers assess whether an organic production and processing standard applicable in one region of the world is equivalent, ie not identical but equally valid, to another organic standard. This tool facilitates trade while also safeguarding organic production according to local socio-economic and agro-ecological conditions, FAO said.
The second tool, IROCB is a minimum set of performance requirements for organic certification bodies that will enable import of products certified under foreign control systems.
According to FAO, more than 100 countries export certified organic products. But international organic trade is hindered by a multitude of standards, regulations and conformity assessment systems.
Noting on the current organic trade situation, the UN body said that products certified as organic under one system are not easily recognised as organic under another. This causes major headaches and costs for organic producers and exporters wishing to sell in different markets.
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