Kazakhstan pursues organic production strategy

Kazakhstan continued its pursuit of organic agriculture production, certification and marketing this week as it welcomed a group of FAO experts to Astana.

FAO investment support officer Kairat Nazhmidenov, senior natural resources officer and key FAO expert in organic Nadia Scialabba, and organic legislation expert and legal consultant Raushan Zhazykbayeva were accompanied by Lorenzo Peris, an international expert on certification of organic products.

The two-year, US$ 338,000 FAO project "Supporting the development of organic farming and institutional capacity building in Kazakhstan" was launched in 2015. It aims to strengthen the country’s organic sector in terms of production capacity, legislation, organizational infrastructure, certification, and strategic planning. The longer-term objective is to supply organic produce from Kazakhstan to both domestic and foreign markets, including European Union countries and China.

Activities under the project include training of farmers and agriculture specialists and providing advice to the staff of Ministries and departments involved in formulating strategic objectives and policies on various aspects of the organic sector.

The FAO team met with representatives of government agencies involved in regulating the production, certification, labeling and export of organic products for both domestic and foreign markets.

With Vice Minister of Agriculture Toleutay Rahimbekov, they discussed coordination of work plans and priorities for FAO support.

They also met with non-governmental organizations and research institutions interested in developing the organic sector.

"Kazakhstan has great potential for the production of organic food, as its agriculture is based on extensive grazing and cropping systems,” said Scialabba. “Nevertheless, it should be understood that aligning the national system of organic production, certification and marketing with international requirements is quite complex and time-consuming. Kazakhstan is at the beginning of this path so it’s very important to adopt a system that capitalizes on the country's comparative advantage, while continuing to forge and strengthen relevant partnerships.”

Priorities identified during this week’s discussions will form the basis of a strategic roadmap for Kazakhstan’s organic sector. Implementation of the roadmap will be coordinated by the Ministry of Agriculture, in coordination with FAO and in close cooperation with other concerned governmental and nongovernmental groups, as well as national and international experts in the organic sector.

“International experience demonstrates there are no universal recipes in the development of the organic sector, said Nazhmidenov, who led the FAO team on its visit to Kazakhstan. “Each country chooses its own path depending on the specifics of its agriculture, the potential of domestic and foreign markets, trade partners and export strategies, considering other significant factors.”

In developing a national system of production, certification and marketing of organic products, Nazhmidenov added, it is very important to maintain a continuous dialogue among all participants in this process. As a UN agency, FAO is well positioned to maintain such a dialogue.

21 April 2017, Astana, Kazakhstan