Many farmers in Ireland are already on their way to becoming organic in the manner they are farming already, and it requires just a little bit of education to get them all the way there.
That’s the view of Stephen Connolly, the CEO of the Organic Trust, the largest organic certification body in the state.
Speaking to Agriland in the wake BIOFACH – the world’s leading organic food trade fair, which was held in Nuremberg, Germany in late July – Connolly noted Ireland’s slowness in adopting organic food production compared to other countries; but also the progress that has been made to address that.
“What we really got to see at BIOFACH was the huge amount of progress that other countries have done. The one thing we did take away, though, was how far behind Ireland really is.
“We got to see all these other amazing models around the world, and that Ireland is really a long way behind in terms of its journey to get us to that stage. It was a real eye-opener for lots of different reasons, to see the extent of what’s going on in organics around the world, but also to see that we have a bit of catch-up to do,” Connolly said.
However, he also stressed that “there’s a lot already in train”, in efforts to boost Ireland’s organic performance, including the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s organics unit, as well as increased funding that will be put towards the sector in the coming years.
“It all needs a cohesive approach to make sure we’re driving it the right way. We are now in agreement in terms of what needs to go on.”
The Organic Trust CEO argued that it has “never been easier” to get into organics, but that farmers required education and information to give them a final push towards going organic.
“To be honest, there are a lot of people out there farming conventionally who are 90% organic, they just don’t know it. The education piece needs to happen. And with that we could very quickly bring people into the organics space,” he said.
Connolly noted that there is already work being done in terms of educating farmers on organics, including farm walks; organic-specific advisors; webinars; courses in both agricultural colleges and universities; and the National Organic Training Skillnet (NOTS).
However, he said that the wider public also needs to be informed.
“We have the situation where there’s a little bit of confusion in the market, when the advertisers are talking about homegrown or grass-fed. It’s then about trying to explain to somebody the difference between what grass-fed is and what organic is, because they are not always the same, and that’s where there is a little bit of confusion,” Connolly pointed out.
At present, there are a number of programmes at primary, secondary and third-level education to inform students about organic farming. Connolly called for further programmes of this type in school and university settings.
Organic markets
One of the main barriers to farmers turning to organics at the moment, Connolly argued, is the lack of markets available for organic produce compared to conventionally produced food.
“If you’re a farmer on the ground you need to know that there is a market there for organics. Otherwise you’re doing work for something you may not be getting anything out of,” he said.
Connolly called for public procurement to be used in order to guarantee a market for organic farmers within Ireland.
“If you’re in dairy right now, there is only one or two places you can go to get any sort of price on your organic milk, whereas if there was public procurement there and we had organic milk in the schools, that would be a different ball game altogether.
“We’re in a chicken and egg situation here, we’re we have a lack of markets because there is no certainty on supply, and if people do join and get into organics we will see then those bigger players driving the market,” he noted.
“We’re in a kind of grey area right now, but I do honestly believe that if we get big numbers in the Organic Farming Scheme [OFS], those bigger players will see the benefits they get from it, and they’ll put their resources in appropriately,” Connolly argued.
On the Organic Farming Scheme, the Organic Trust CEO said that if it is “promoted the right way”, than participants will see the benefits of the scheme.
“We want people to come into organics for the right reasons of sustainability. We want them to come in because they are organically minded. But once people see the benefits…it becomes a bit of a no-brainer.
“Once more people come into the scheme, the markets will open, and will in turn bring more people into the scheme. I do see that we are going to have that type of movement over the next couple of years,” Connolly argued.