March 9, 2010

Canada invests in organic processing sector

The Canadian government is helping local organic farmers and food processors deliver the highest quality organic food to consumers by investing CA$170,000.

The Organic Trade Association (OTA) in Canada will receive more than CA$118,000 from the Government of Canada's AgriMarketing programme to stay ahead of international market trends by participating in international trade shows, developing promotional materials, and building a long-term international strategy for the organic sector.

While the Canadian Organic Growers Association (COG) will receive almost CA$50,000 from the Government of Canada's Integrated Food Safety Initiative to develop a strategy for determining how current on-farm food safety systems can best meet the specific needs of organic agriculture. Five organic commodities will be chosen for this project in consultation with organic farmers across the country.

Both contributions are funded under the Government of Canada's Growing Forward framework. In addition, Canada's Economic Action Plan continues to support agriculture as a core economic driver in this country.

The Canadian organic retail market was valued at close to CA$2 billion in 2008, representing a 66% growth from the CA$1.2 billion organic retail value in 2006.