Smallholder farmers and organic certification: Accessing the EU market from the developing world

Organic imports into the EU from the developing world are growing rapidly. Certification regulations for the import of organic products are very rigor ous and smallholder farmers, in common with all farmers, must comply with a complex array of rules and procedures to access this market. This paper in vestigates the many challenges faced by smallholder farmers in acquiring ce rtification as well as the benefits to farmers of being able to export cert ified organic produce. Certification costs are high but, as the paper expla ins, can be overcome by smallholders forming producer groups, acquiring ext ernal funding, selling on contract and, in some countries, being able to ut ilize national rather than EU certification bodies. The bureaucracy and pap erwork of certification are problematic to smallholders, who must also choo se the 'right' certifier to ensure acceptance in the market. Another issue for smallholders examined in the paper is the necessity for reliable market ing linkages. Although there are obstacles, there are also benefits from ce rtification and the paper evaluates evidence of benefits both to individual s and communities.