Course Introduction
Under the current scenario of depleting natural resources, negative impacts of climatic variability, increased use of chemical inputs and volatile food prices are the major challenges while achieving food security for a growing population and diminishing poverty while sustaining agricultural systems. In addition to these challenges, the principal indicators of non-sustainability of agricultural systems includes: soil erosion, soil organic matter decline, salinization.
Hence now it is the need of an hour to save our soils and human health with a gradual shift into organic and sustainable farming and encourage farmers for adopting farming practices for betterment of human and soil life. Organic production is regulated by law. Currently, in most of the countries, food producers need to have a special certification for organic production in order to market their products as “organic”. For the purposes of these laws, organic food is produced in a manner that complies with the standards prescribed at the national or international level.
This course is designed with an aim to make a farmer / organic grower enough competent to plan, coordinate and manage cultivation of their crops and find stable market for their organic produce. Certification Standards and Categories are crucial part in the Certification of any organic farm. Certification can be done individually for the farmer or for a local group/ NGO i.e. Organized Grower Group. Roles and responsibilities of internal inspector are also very important aspect for any OGG. Detailed methods and process of documentation, registration and certification are included in this course.
The offered course is a package of total three independent modules. Every step / module itself is an independent course with thorough understanding of the topics covered. This course is a scientific blend of classroom / online sessions, practical demonstrations at well-established organic farms and certification agencies along with self-explanatory journeys of successful entrepreneurs.
