Organic agriculture from the beginning was export-oriented, dominated by the demand from the western markets. Not until 1999 was there a strong initiative to develop the domestic market for organic, when the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA), market actors, and NGOs got together to discuss how to promote the domestic market. From 2000, specialized shops expanded the market, and in 2005 there were around 300 sales points all over the country. The first organic farmers’ market was established in Istanbul in 2006, and organic produce is also appearing in supermarkets. In 2005, the certified organic area was 175,000 ha and the number of farmers around 12,000, producing an increasing range of products. Unification of the organic concept in the legislation of 2002 was crucial to promote organic products to consumers and increase awareness. The Organic Farming Law 5262 came into force in 2004 and the Regulation on Essentials and Implementation of Organic Farming in 2005. The Turkish regulations are harmonized with the EU standards. Organic farming has been promoted on the political level as a unique tool for rural development in Turkey. Several government programs support organic agriculture, with e.g. area payments, and the project for implementation of the CAP Rural Development Program, prepared with the help of Europeaid, is likely to provide good opportunities. Many international organizations and donors also have supported organic development. Two official committees with broad stakeholder participation are parts of the decision-making process of the organic sector. A new law facilitated the establishment of producers’ unions and cooperatives, resulting in the formation of new farmer organizations. The main challenge for the organic sector now is the lack of a national strategy and lack of coordination among different stakeholders. MARA started to prepare a National Strategy document in May 2006. (Author: Victor Ananias)