THE FUTURE OF ORGANIC AGRICULTURE WORLDWIDE AND SIGNIFICANCE OF LONG-TERM PLANNING OF NATURAL RESOURCES FOR ECOLOGICAL AGRICULTURE IN THE IGNEADA AND ITS SURROUNDINGS

摘要

The organic agriculture has rapidly developed worldwide during the last decades. Organic farming is practiced in approximately at 100 countries in the world and the area under organic management is continually growing. Currently, more than 24 million ha are under organic practice worldwide. The global market for organic food and drink was valued at USD 23 billion by the end of 2002. Although production of organic crops is increasing across the globe, sales are concentrated particularly in the industrialised parts of the world. The European sales of organic products were estimated to have expanded by about 8% in 2002 to reach 10.5 billion US dollars. Igneada and its surroundings have remained free from pollution originating from the economical development. Economical pressure has increased due to the fact that the area is at the border of Turkey and Bulgaria and has been designated as a sensitive area. The modelling of organic agriculture in this region is based, on the one hand, on the existence of rich and unpolluted area of natural resource and, on the other, on the principle of appropriate use-protect. The ecological resources available at Igneada and its surroundings also occur, in a transboundary fashion, in Bulgaria. Availability of such areas in the transboundary manner in the Balkans may help to establish green belts and nature reserves in long-term. The only way to protect the area is to create awareness in its inhabitants regarding the potentiality of the area and in doing so the local people will be consciously both using and protecting the local resources with a long-term view of transboundary protection. This is the most effective way to protect the resources on the global basis. Igneada and its surroundings are very suitable for eco-agriculture and the same characteristics are available on the other side of the border in Bulgaria. Already existing agriculture practices in the area display characteristics similar to typical eco-agriculture applications because fertilisation, chemical use against pests and diseases and hormone application cither not practiced or used only minimally. Therefore, the only additional efforts required here are preparation of land inventory and production modelling and organisation of the production as well as initiation of the organic certification schemes.