The number of Organic Farms in the UK rises
British farmers involved in the cultivation of organic products are growing. Since 1999, a total of 33 farmers in the east of the UK (West Sussex) are engaged in such production, which occupies the area some 2,800 hectares of land covered by the Plan of Organic Agriculture of the British government.
Since the adoption of the Plan (SFO, its acronym in English), 2090 farmers have cultivated about 161,000 hectares throughout the UK. The British authorities claim that the contribution that organic agriculture methods can be beneficial both for the environment and food quality, as reported by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra on ALARA ) in the UK.
In addition, and as Elliot Morley, minister for farming says, such production contributes to sustainable development of the activity in the UK. The increase of organic production in the country responds to growing demand for high quality products. According to Morley, British consumers are increasingly demanding organic products, a trend that has led to increased activity of 33% from 2000 to 2001.