The Council of Agriculture announced plans Sept. 30 to further develop organic agriculture zones, as part of government efforts to accelerate the development of Taiwan’s organic farming sector.
The COA has integrated plots of land provided by the Taiwan Sugar Corp. and the Veterans Affairs Commission under the Executive Yuan to create organic agriculture zones covering a total of 262 hectares. These zones are expected to become fully operational by 2012.
Tsai Ching-chiang, deputy director-general of the COA’s Agriculture and Food Agency, said the four new zones are located in eastern Hualien County and southern Tainan and Kaohsiung counties.
According to Tsai, these organic agriculture zones are expected to pass certification by the end of next year. The relevant city and county governments will then be commissioned to assist in recruiting businesses to set up shop in the zones.
The COA plans to assist farmers in establishing production and marketing cooperatives in the zones. In addition, it will set up packaging plants, delivery services, operations centers and other services to help create a cluster effect that will gradually develop into full-scale organic villages, the council said.
Tsai pointed out that the organic agriculture sector in Taiwan has been developing rapidly in recent years. To date, a total of 3,540 hectares of organic agricultural lands have passed certification, creating a production value of roughly NT$1.7 billion (US$54.26 million) last year. Production is forecast to grow by 23.5 percent to reach NT$2.1 billion for 2010, he added.
According to the COA’s estimates, the total land area devoted to organic agriculture will increase to about 5,000 hectares by 2012, including some 800 hectares within the special zones. Annual production is forecast to top NT$3 billion, the council said.
