Organic Agriculture will reach schools and hospitals

Farmers estimate that in two years the organic cultivated area in Granada will rise from 28,000 to 50,000 hectares

Granada: The Granada schools will be the first Andalusian canteens to offer its students a menu based on organic products. Next to them, hospitals will join this initiative, which aims to provide a top quality food to the diners. Not surprisingly, demand in the city of such products is very high, so some months ago, the supermarket chain Covirán offered such products at a very affordable price.

In Granada, the production is over 28,000 acres (5 per cent of the total area). The CEO of Organic Agriculture of Andalusia, Manuel Gonzalez, believes that in two years this expansion will reach 50,000 hectares with crops, primarily for grazing livestock, olives, grains and nuts.

Yesterday, more than 200 people gathered at the Science Park of Granada to attend the constitution of the association for the defense and promotion of organic agriuclture (Graeca), it analyzed the situation and expectations production and concluded that "it is not finished off by the lack of organization of producers, technicians and consumers.”

"Fruit and vegetable production will have more value because it has a potentially very large place, in fact there are many farmers who have asked us how to turn their crops into organic," said Gonzalez.

According to the director general of organic agriculture in Andalusia there are two factors that will enhance the future development of these crops in Granada, the first is the common agricultural policy that will promote sustainability and, second, the Environmental awareness increasingly entrenched among consumers.

"When a citizen buys a green apple thinks it's the environment but also the benefits that will bring the product to their health," explains the director general of agriculture. So that consumers can access these products one of the challenges of the new association will be lower prices. "We look for producers that meet the demand, until now the entire production is generated in the province came out, which considerably urged the prices of these items," revealed Gonzalez.

In Granada, there are about 600 farmers engaged in organic production.

Source: Grenada Today

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