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15th IFOAM Organic World Congress |
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The international organic community converged on Adelaide, Australia
for the 15th IFOAM Organic World Congress “Shaping Sustainable
Systems,” with more than 1000 delegates from 72 countries from
September 20-23, resulting in a Congress Declaration calling on
governments to increase investment in organic agriculture.
The Congress Declaration of The 15th Organic World Congress of the
International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) calls
upon governments worldwide to actively endorse and practically support
organic agriculture. It also calls on individual governments to
allocate budgetary funds for investment into organic agriculture,
proportionate to the organic sector’s production in their countries,
and to internalize social and environmental costs in the prices of
agricultural products and remunerate organic farmers for ecosystem
services they provide.
“Australia is the world leader when it comes to total certified organic
acreage. My own home country, Sweden, has a target that 20 percent of
the land should be organically farmed by year 2005, and I can happily
announce that it is almost accomplished – the latest figures state 19
percent,” reported Gunnar Rundgren, IFOAM President, in his opening
speech. He noted “Research shows that organic is a more productive
system if all relevant aspects are taken into account, such as the
external costs and the maintenance and production of eco system
services,” which was recently demonstrated through a 22-year farming
trial study from Cornell University
(http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/July05/organic.farm.vs.other.ssl.html).
In his keynote speech, Australian Senator the Hon. Richard Colbeck,
Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry,
emphasized “In line with international trends, the organic movement is
experiencing unprecedented interest in Australia and rapidly gaining
mainstream consumer and producer acceptance, adding “With local demand
for organic produce substantially outstripping supply, there is
enormous scope for expanding the range and volume of organic product
offered to Australian – and international – consumers.”
Andre Leu, Chair of the Organic Federation of Australia noted “There
are not too many good news stories in agriculture. It is in crisis on
every continent with farmers struggling to survive. In Australia we
have lost over 20,000 farmers in the last decade and it is similar in
most countries. However the number of organic farmers continues to
increase and we have proven that can provide the most important of
commodities, healthy food. We are truly one of the good news stories, a
wonderful ray of hope for our world.”
The IFOAM Organic World Congress serves to facilitate the gathering and
exchange of knowledge about the latest trends in organic agriculture
between people from all over the world. It’s a forum for discussing
both common viewpoints and diverging perspectives, thus shaping the
future of the international organic movement. “IFOAM has held our most
important event in Australia, and with over 11,300,00 hectares and
2,170 farms under organic management, accounting for 42.7% of the
global total, Australia was a well-deserved location. Organic
Agriculture, specifically in regard to its positive impact on the
improvement of soils - to only name one of the many benefits, holds a
lot of promise here, and we hope that the Australian organic movement
benefits and grows as a result of this event,” explains Gerald A.
Herrmann, IFOAM Vice President.
“The National Association for Sustainable Agriculture, Australia
(NASAA), the congress organizer, has done a wonderful job bringing the
program and participants together and setting the stage for a
successful event. Jan Denham, the Congress Director, and her committed
team deserve our special appreciation. IFOAM would also like to express
its gratitude to the many donors and supporters of this conference,”
states Angela B. Caudle, IFOAM Executive Director.
The 8th International IFOAM Organic Viticulture and Wine Conference
also brought together the world’s experts on organic wine from all over
the planet to facilitate the further development of markets and
products, and discussed challenges and opportunities for moving forward
and conquering mainstream markets.
The International Scientific Conference on Organic Agriculture delved
into the latest research and technical advances in organic agriculture.
Organized by ISOFAR, the newly established global scientific research
authority for organic agriculture, the conference has helped to take
global cooperation in research, methodological development, education
and knowledge exchange another step forward.
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