What is Organic Agriculture?
Today, organic food has become a fashion not only in our country but also in the whole world. The source of output is America and Europe. According to the legal regulations issued in our country, organic agriculture is a form of agricultural production that is not used chemical substances during production, and that all stages from production to consumption of these products are controlled and documented. However, since some foreign countries do not find this definition sufficient and correct, they also use definitions such as biological agriculture or ecological agriculture. Because organic expression defines events related to living organisms. In this case, any form of growing a plant or animal is organic. No other way can be imagined. Therefore, the point that affects people most about organic food is that chemicals should not be used in production activities.
The balance between plants, animals and other living things in nature should not be disturbed in order for people to continue their development and life. In order to do this, it is necessary not to consume natural resources in the first place, not to harm the natural life, not to cause environmental pollution and to use agricultural methods to enrich and protect the soil.
Today, sustainable agricultural activities envisage the use of natural fertilizers instead of artificial fertilizers, thereby increasing the fertility of the soil. In short, the concept of sustainable agriculture is largely the basis of organic agriculture. The other pillar of organic farming is the lack of chemicals (ie synthetic pesticides) used to combat plant diseases and pests.
However, it is useful to know that when organic farming or organic products are mentioned, completely natural grown products are not meant. In other words, organic products are not products that grow naturally in nature without using any chemicals. When growing organic products, artificial fertilizers and pesticides are generally not used. However, organic (such as animal feces) and non-organic fertilizers may be used in accordance with the Law of Organic Agriculture and the regulations issued on the basis of this Law. In addition, toxic substances of plant origin and non-organic chemicals such as copper oxide or copper sulfate may be used. The said regulations are exactly the same as those of organic agriculture legislation published in the European Union.
While organic farming activities were carried out in 2008 country in 154 in the world, 2009 was introduced to the country in 160. 2009 At the end of the year, 37 has been certified according to organic standards covering an area of million hectares. Latin America and European countries are the countries with the highest growth rates. One third of the organic farming area consists of one-year or perennial crop production areas. Two-thirds are green areas such as meadows and pastures. Looking at continents, Oceania has a share of 35 to the face, 23 to the European continent and 23 to the American continent. The Asian continent has a share of 9 and the African continent has a share of 3.
The prepared standards and legal regulations are of great importance in organic farming activities. The basic standards prepared by the World Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) are followed all over the world. The first legal regulation affecting the organic agriculture activities worldwide is the regulation numbered 1991 / 20092 which came into force in the European Union in 91. In 2007, the European Union Council issued the regulation EC 834 / 2007 on organic production and labeling of organic products. In this regulation, the aim of organic agriculture, scope and definitions, objectives and principles of organic production, production rules, labeling, controls to be made, the rules for trade and transition work with third countries are included.
Today, legal arrangements have been made for organic agriculture in the countries close to 80 and law studies are continuing in more than 20 countries. In our country, organic farming activities started in the 1984-85 season with the export of organic raisins and dried figs. By the year 2008, this number reached 250 product on raw material basis. Almost all organic certified products produced are shipped to European Union countries, USA and Japan.
The Regulation on the Production of Crop and Animal Agricultural Products by Ecological Methods in our country entered into force in 1994 and the Regulation on Principles and Application of Organic Agriculture came into force in 2002.
People can live healthily only by consuming natural foods. Even though the world food production increases slightly with traditional farming methods, human life is badly affected by the rapid pollution of soil and water resources and atmosphere. If this continues, it means that the land will someday surrender. Therefore, it is necessary to use natural resources in a balanced way and to apply new agricultural methods. Therefore, it is inevitable to turn to organic agriculture.
What is Organic Agriculture Certification?
Organic agriculture is a system with the highest level of reliability and traceability among agricultural production systems. Because all the domestic and foreign standards on this subject require the control and certification of all stages of production from field to table. Control and certification activities are therefore the first step of organic production activities and are the most important part of gaining the trust of consumers.
Certification studies are carried out for the application of all control methods required by organic farming standards and as a result of this it is evaluated in accordance with the legal regulations in which the input and product is audited and to determine its suitability. Organizations that will carry out control and certification must also be accredited within two years at the latest (TS EN ISO / IEC 17065 Conformity assessment - Requirements standard for organizations that issue product, process and service certification).
The certification process in organic agriculture starts with the application of the producer company to the certification body. The organization makes the necessary assessments and starts the audit works. Soil, plant or fruit samples are taken according to determined risks and in case of doubt, necessary analyzes are performed. Analyzes should be performed in an accredited laboratory according to the ISO 17025 standard. According to the results of the report prepared after the audits, the certification body issues an Organic Agriculture Certificate to the enterprise. The document must contain all the necessary details to ensure traceability of the product.
A number of supports are provided for the development and trade of organic production in our country.
