Morocco is expected to add to its foreign earnings through export of organic products from 73 M€ in
2020 to 230 M€ in 2030, under a contract program of 2011-2020 for the development of organic value chain in the country.
FIMABIO, which is an umbrella organization responsible for the development of organic agriculture in Morocco, entered a ten year contract program with the government and 100 M€ has been invested to boost the of operations in order to reach several objectives.
‘’Under this contract program we have several objectives that shall take us to our specific objective, ‘’ said Khalid Azim, FIMABIO cordinator in an interview with AfrONet Newsletter recently through
skype.
He pointed out that FIMABIO is bound to the government with a contract program (2011-2020) for the development of the organic value chain in Morocco, with the investment program of up to 100
M€.
According to Azim, the objectives for the contract program include certified cropping land: 40,000 hectares by 2020 and 100 000 hectares by 2030, whereby the production is targeted to one million tonnes come 2030 and 50 per cent should be processed and 400,000 tonnes in 2020 out of which 25per cent should be processed.
In export, under the same objective, it is projected that 60,000 tonnes should be exported in 2020 and 200,000 tonnes should be exported come year 2030.
The production volume under contract program is estimated to increase the country’s forex to 73 M€ in 2020 through export of organic products and 230 M€ in 2030 under the same program.
This means that from 2020 Morocco is expected to get foreign earnings of 15.7 percent increase annualy as it gets to 2030.
FIMABIO brings together three professional associations representing three key organic actors in the entire Kingdom: Production with “the Moroccan Association of Organic Producers, (ANAPROBIO) the Moroccan Association of Organic Processors, (VALBIO MAROC) and the Moroccan Association of Organic Distributors and Exporters (ANADEXBIO).
Certified organic farming in Morocco has significantly evolved since 1986, the certified area has substantially grown and a regulatory framework is successfully set up and the development potential
of organic agriculture in Morocco is tremendous.
Although FIMABIO is a young in organic movement still it is carrying a very clear, audacious and ambitious vision that advocates “for an organic Morocco”, stated Azim.
The current organic certified land in Morocco is about 870,000 hectares, managed by 260 entities, including farmers, companies and cooperatives throughout the country.
The cropping area is about 8,500 in addition to 1,700 hactares in conversion to organic agriculture, the remaining area is a certified area for natural collection such as argan forest, olive orchard and aromatic and medicinal plants.
Concerning the regulation process, FIMABIO and the government had worked together to set up regulation framework and in February 2013, the Moroccan organic law N°39.12 has been issued. Until now four implementing decrees have been published in the official journal concerning
specifications for plant and animal production, processing and aquaculture.
There is a national commission of organic production (NCOP) that studies and approves the regulation and its application decrees, and also grants certification bodies to operate under the law N°39.12.
Producers are mindful also for subsidies and support in the certification and production costs. Hopefully grants do exist but ministry of agriculture stands to complete all the legal framework in
order to set the grants and guarantee the producers compliance with strong measured indicators.
Azim added that subsidies for certification will be 70 per cent with a threshold of 1000 MAD/ ha for crops, possibly 700 MAD/ ton for animal products, and 1000 MAD / ton for exported processed products.
The grant will be given only during the conversion period. The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries subsidise agriculture in general by other financial supports for agricultural equipment (drip irrigation) and agricultural inputs, which are freed of tax when imported to Morocco.
