Organic cotton tested in the south

Farmers in the south of Kyrgyzstan have organically produced their first 24 mt of cotton fibre. Organic agriculture is predicted to take off by 2006, allowing local farmers the opportunity to increase their standard of living while at the same time protect the environment. "I think I have chosen the right way to farm," Raimov Makambai, a farmer from the Jalalabat region who recently switched to organic farming, told IRIN. "It's better for the environment and for people's health." "I converted to organic farming because I want to hand over clean and fertile land to my children. I want to give them good farming know-how so that they can live off the land in the future," Mirzaakim Kurbashev, another farmer, from Blagoveshenka village in Jalalabat region, told IRIN. To date, some 40 farmers in the Jalalabat region have converted from conventional to organic agriculture, with another 160 ready to do so in 2005. By 2006, local farmers are expected to produce 110 mt of cotton fibre, which will be certified as organic. More importantly, in the future not only cotton but other organic products will be grown and sold both locally and abroad. The organic agriculture initiative belongs to the Organic Cotton Production and Trade Promotion Project, financed by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, the Dutch-based Hivos fund and the Swiss Association for International Cooperation Helvetas.

The economic potential for organic cotton is great

Helvetas, which implements the project, brings to Kyrgyzstan its experience in organic cotton production from Mali, India and Tanzania. In these countries, conversion from traditional to organic agriculture has helped to stabilise the economic situation, as well as improve the health of the local population and the environment. Soil in the project area was once considered one of the most fertile in the world. But following decades of bad agricultural management its quality has been degraded substantially. "Cotton is one of those difficult crops which requires the use of many inorganic fertilisers, pesticides and defoliants. Intensive cotton growing leads not only to the degradation of the soil but dramatically harms people's health," Ilya Domashov, coordinator of programmes on sustainable development in the ecological movement Biom, told IRIN. Extensive cotton growing in the Central Asian region and the use of chemicals has resulted in an ecological crisis throughout much of the Aral Sea region. "In this regard, organic agriculture could help to decrease the threat of dangerous chemicals to nature and people's health," Domashov explained. And while organic agriculture is not yet widely popular in the largely mountainous former Soviet republic, farmers nevertheless are beginning to realise its advantages. Economically, organic cotton commands 20 percent more on average in its selling price than regularly grown cotton. The organic cotton produced in Kyrgyzstan has a purchase guarantee from a Swiss cotton trading company. In the first two years the cotton is called "first/second-conversion-year cotton" and the buyer purchases it at a conventional price. However, in 2006 when their cotton is certified as organic for the first time, they will be paid in full by the trading company. That's good news for farmers in the region, with demand for organic food and ecologically produced textiles continuing to grow both in Europe and America. It is estimated that the share of organic cotton in the Swiss market will grow from 0.1 percent in 2002 to 5 percent in 2007. "In Western Europe people are ready to pay higher prices for the organic cotton. They are aware of the ecological problems in the world and want to be responsible for the protection of the environment," Nicolas Boll, manager of the Bio-Cotton project in Jalalabat, told IRIN.

Kyrgyz women work the cotton fields of southern Jalalabat

Also, many people prefer organic cotton for health reasons as it is hypoallergenic. "From the macro-economic point of view it makes sense for Kyrgyzstan to invest in value-added crops such as organic cotton in order to be able to compete with neighbouring countries such as Uzbekistan and China, which produce cotton in large quantities," Karin Fueg, Helvetas programme director in Kyrgyzstan, remarked. Meanwhile, the project continues to seek farmers who can cope with the conversion to organic agriculture. "We are looking at their farm conditions and at their motivation," Boll explained. "We do not want to see only those driven just by economic reasons, who come because they've heard the price for the organic cotton is higher. We welcome those who have realised that their soil fertility is decreasing and want to change that. They are the special kind of farmers, the pioneers," he maintained. But converting to organic agriculture does not suit all farmers, who must refrain from the use of mineral fertilisers, treated seeds, synthetic pesticides and genetically modified organisms - all techniques of conventional agriculture. Farms are checked five times per year to ensure that the cotton is grown organically. In 2004, 34 percent of farmers could not comply with the requirements of organic agriculture and had no choice but to leave the project. Organic agriculture in Kyrgyzstan is a new idea and it's not suprising that their is a degree of official scepticism. "The success of organic farming depends on whether such farmers will be able to show practical results and prove that their income has really grown after the conversion," Sagynbaev Askarbek, a cotton specialist in the agriculture ministry said.