Stakeholders’ views on improving the organic certification system: Results from an EU level workshop

The FP7 CERTCOST project has the overall objective to give recommendations to the public authorities and private actors in the whole organic certification chain on how to improve the organic food certification systems in terms of efficiency, transparency and cost effectiveness. According to the project description (the Description of Work, or DoW) this will be done based on a scientific economic in depth analysis of the certification systems from the farmer to the consumer in 5 EU countries (the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom), plus Switzerland and the candidate country, Turkey. To safeguard that the CERTCOST objectives, work plan and methodology is in line with the expectations of key stakeholders from all levels of the certification chain the DoW foresaw a Stakeholder workshop to be organised in the beginning of the project. The current report documents the main points of the discussions and recommendation given by the stakeholders at this CERTCOST Stakeholder workshop, which took place on November, 13-15, 2008 in Izmir, Turkey, 2.5 months after the project had started. A total of 20 stakeholders were invited, of whom 16 could participate in the workshop. The participant profile included both users and providers of the certification system at different levels such as representatives of farmers’ organizations certification/control bodies, government authorities, EU Commission, processors/ traders, private experts/consultants. Together with the representatives of the partner institutions in the CERTCOST project, the total number of workshop participants was 35 representing 12 European countries. Given the diverse backgrounds of the workshop participants, a working group approach (World Café approach) was applied in order to give the participants the opportunity to reflect their experiences and ideas on the implementation of the project in a synergetic, comfortable and free environment. After a brief presentation of the project, outlining the tasks of the work packages and describing the proposed links between the project and the stakeholders by the project coordinator, the stakeholders were divided into four groups according to their level in the organic certification chain, as farmers, processors/traders, certification bodies and consumers. Two working group sessions were carried out around the questions provided to the stakeholders before the workshop through electronic mails. The questions had been compiled based on input from the managers of the four work packages which were relevant to the workshop discussion. After the first working group session, a plenary discussion session for clustering of the output given by the working groups, their validation and assessment was carried out. In the second session of the working groups, it was rather aimed to harmonize the understanding between the diversified opinions mentioned in Session 1. The working group approach concluded in a final plenary discussion. On the second day, the CERTCOST work package managers presented how the discussions, comments and inputs of the working group sessions could impact on their working plans. In the final session the stakeholders were addressed directly for providing further ideas both on the project and on future collaboration options. The workshop was strongly focused on the identification of key characteristics of cost factors along the supply chain in relation to their impact on the quality of the given service. However a broad range of related subjects were discussed. The Stakeholder workshop put forward that, the ‘cost’ was among the most important topics relating to the certification system performance. The focus of the project aiming at cost effectiveness and not cost minimization was confirmed by the stakeholders. All of the stakeholders present in the workshop demonstrated elevated levels of interest on several outputs of the project. The workshop revealed very positive expectations among the stakeholders towards the risk based approach to be followed in the CERTCOST project. The detailed picture of the organic certification sector obtained through the workshop will constitute an important input to the CERTCOST project and the workshop is considered to be a successful first step in the project-stakeholder interaction. The Stakeholder workshop provided important insight into the many discussion subjects of the organic certification systems in the EU and worldwide, among others the following should be mentioned. Farmers expect to have, clear rules, fair implementation, and high skilled guidance in the inspection and certification process, and underline the need for training of farmers and certifiers and for better communication between all parties in the certification chain. Processors point out the need for a good relationship with the inspectors and certifiers as well as the fact that there existed different schemes in different countries regarding the inspection process and the related cost structure. They also highlighted the difficulty of managing the relations with increasing number of different standards and different certification bodies. It is agreed that consumers expect something they can trust and they can easily recognize, a label, a logo, a certifier, a brand, a farmer or the word ‘organic’; at local, regional, national, or EU-level. It is also concluded that whether, why and how much some consumers might be willing to pay more for particular logos was unknown and was needed to be investigated. Authorities/certification bodies stress that the issue of knowledge and education is extremely important and that there are complex legislations, no common standards, and differences within and between countries. They underline that there are different catalogues in different countries to deal with irregularities which should be harmonized. They emphasize that a clear definition of certification should be made covering its objectives, principles and tools. While on some of the issues there has been a highlighted consensus among the groups, on some others contrasting ideas became evident. Among those subjects of absolute agreement were the importance of and the need for a more clear understanding of the certification system, its components and rules by all the parties involved. Education and elevated levels of necessary skills from farmer to inspector and to consumer; increased transparency and information exchange, well defined relationships between parties were considered to be an indispensable basis for a well functioning and more efficient certification system. The inspection concept came into prominence, with a discussion on policing vs. development approaches. While an efficient and comparable control system was judged to be crucial, promising private governmental formulations were agreed to be based on country conditions. Complexity of the legislation and lack of transparency were the remarkable barriers to a more efficient control system. The EU logo and the new EU Regulation for organic certification were also discussed among stakeholders. It was suggested that the EU logo might have the potential to boost demand in the ‘less developed’ organic markets, but more promotion then currently planned would be needed. It was agreed that most consumers do not look for logos of particular standards but for the word ‘organic’ and/or an organic logo they are familiar with. This might be different for ‘committed’ organic consumers in more mature markets. Overall, it was agreed that ‘trust’ is the most crucial aspect of organic certification regarding the consumer side. The issue of multiple certification and standards appeared to be a factor deserving more attention in the certification world. Harmonization in certification of the same characteristic of a product was deemed necessary. On the other hand, exchange of experiences and cooperation with markets like ‘Fair Trade’ was agreed to be potentially beneficial

The Relation among retail price main of consumption center of fruit and vegetables and Region of Mediterranean (Turkey) : Test of Market Integration

Spatial price differentials for selected fresh fruits and vegetables, among six cities of Turkey, namely, Adana, Mersin, Antalya, important production centers, and İstanbul, Ankara and İzmir, main consumption centers, were investigated. The relations among retail prices of different cities were analyzed using Vector Auto Regression (VAR) models for each product. The existence or not, and the level of integration -in the affirmative case- among city markets regarding each product were tried to be analyzed using Ravallion’s dynamic analysis method of the market integration. Monthly data used are the retailer price series from 1994 to 2004, obtained from DIE for each of the cities. Retail prices of lemons, lettuce and tomatoes are considered as representative of fresh fruits and vegetables market. Results of the VAR model for lemons market revealed that Adana was the leader market, and that the prices of the other cities were dependent on those of the leader. The highlighted leader position of Adana in this market permitted the dynamic analysis method of market integration suggested by Ravallion to be applied in the lemons market. As the result, long-run market integration with Adana for three out of five local markets was detected. In the lettuce market, on the other hand, the VAR model suggested the retail prices in each city to behave fairly independently from each other. Regarding tomato prices, even though virtual influence of Antalya on other cities was identified examining the impulse response functions (IRF) and the variance decomposition obtained from the VAR model, Adana and Mersin were also observed to have their respective regions of impact. The level of leadership assigned to Antalya in tomatoes market was not highlighted enough for dynamic analysis of integration.Var model, Market Integration, Fruit and vegetables, Retail Price, Region of Mediterranean

Akdeniz Bölgesi ve Başlıca Tüketim Merkezlerinde Yaş Meyve ve Sebze Perakende Fiyatları Arasındaki İlişkiler: Pazar Entegrasyonunun Testi

Spatial price differentials for selected fresh fruits and vegetables, among six cities of Turkey, namely, Adana, Mersin, Antalya, important production centers, and İstanbul, Ankara and İzmir, main consumption centers, were investigated. The relations among retail prices of different cities were analyzed using Vector Auto Regression (VAR) models for each product. The existence or not, and the level of integration -in the affirmative case- among city markets regarding each product were tried to be analyzed using Ravallion’s dynamic analysis method of the market integration. Monthly data used are the retailer price series from 1994 to 2004, obtained from DIE for each of the cities. Retail prices of lemons, lettuce and tomatoes are considered as representative of fresh fruits and vegetables market. Results of the VAR model for lemons market revealed that Adana was the leader market, and that the prices of the other cities were dependent on those of the leader. The highlighted leader position of Adana in this market permitted the dynamic analysis method of market integration suggested by Ravallion to be applied in the lemons market. As the result, long-run market integration with Adana for three out of five local markets was detected. In the lettuce market, on the other hand, the VAR model suggested the retail prices in each city to behave fairly independently from each other. Regarding tomato prices, even though virtual influence of Antalya on other cities was identified examining the impulse response functions (IRF) and the variance decomposition obtained from the VAR model, Adana and Mersin were also observed to have their respective regions of impact. The level of leadership assigned to Antalya in tomatoes market was not highlighted enough for dynamic analysis of integration

Akdeniz Bölgesi ve Başlıca Tüketim Merkezlerinde Yaş Meyve ve Sebze Perakende Fiyatları Arasındaki İlişkiler: Pazar Entegrasyonunun Testi

Spatial price differentials for selected fresh fruits and vegetables, among six cities of Turkey, namely, Adana, Mersin, Antalya, important production centers, and İstanbul, Ankara and İzmir, main consumption centers, were investigated. The relations among retail prices of different cities were analyzed using Vector Auto Regression (VAR) models for each product. The existence or not, and the level of integration -in the affirmative case- among city markets regarding each product were tried to be analyzed using Ravallion’s dynamic analysis method of the market integration. Monthly data used are the retailer price series from 1994 to 2004, obtained from DIE for each of the cities. Retail prices of lemons, lettuce and tomatoes are considered as representative of fresh fruits and vegetables market. Results of the VAR model for lemons market revealed that Adana was the leader market, and that the prices of the other cities were dependent on those of the leader. The highlighted leader position of Adana in this market permitted the dynamic analysis method of market integration suggested by Ravallion to be applied in the lemons market. As the result, long-run market integration with Adana for three out of five local markets was detected. In the lettuce market, on the other hand, the VAR model suggested the retail prices in each city to behave fairly independently from each other. Regarding tomato prices, even though virtual influence of Antalya on other cities was identified examining the impulse response functions (IRF) and the variance decomposition obtained from the VAR model, Adana and Mersin were also observed to have their respective regions of impact. The level of leadership assigned to Antalya in tomatoes market was not highlighted enough for dynamic analysis of integration

Tarımda üreticilerin risk karşısındaki davranışları: Bölgesinden bir örnek olay

Coefficients of risk aversion are estimated for a random sample of cotton producers, using Moment Based Approach to Observed Economic Behavior methodology based on the amount of fertilizer used. of the 107 farmers interviewed, 84 are classified as risk averters, and the rest as risk seekers. Variable costs per dekar are found to be higher for risk seekers. Educational level, farming experience, adoption of new varieties, land ownership and annual-income are also related with risk aversion. Less data requiring Direct Elicitation of Utility Function method has generated a consistent grouping of farmers in to risk attitude groups, and correlated coefficients.Üreticilerin riskten kaçınma katsayıları Bergama Kestel Sulama Havzası örneği için, Momente Dayalı Yaklaşımın kullanıldığı Gözlenen Ekonomik Davranış (GED) yöntemi ile hesaplanmıştır. Görüşülen 107 üreticinin 84'ü riskten kaçınan 23'ü ise riski seven olarak gruplandırılmıştır. İlgili varyans analizi, pamukta dekara değişken masrafm riski seven grupta daha fazla olduğunu ortaya koymuştur. Eğitim düzeyi, tarımdaki tecrübe, yeni çeşitleri deneme, mülk arazi yüzdesi, minimum yeterli gelir ve dekara değişken masraflar ile riskten kaçınma arasında anlamlı istatistiksel ilişkiler saptanmıştır. Daha az veri gerektiren Doğrudan Fayda Fonksiyonu yöntemine göre yeniden hesaplanan katsayılar ve bu katsayılara göre üreticilerin risk tutumu gruplarına dağılımı GED yönteminin sonuçlarıyla tutarlı bulunmuştur

Assessing the performance of participatory irrigation management over time: A case study from Turkey

In many countries today, irrigation systems have been transferred to the water user associations (WUAs). Accordingly, it is believed that the performance of the irrigation systems is dependent on the performance of the WUAs. In this study, the performance of participatory irrigation management (PIM) over time is assessed with regard to the Kestel WUA serving a wide area of Turkey's Aegean coast. Data relating to the WUA is obtained from both the State Hydraulic Works and WUAs' own records. In addition, two surveys have been carried out with the members of the WUA with an 8-year interval between them. Data have been analyzed within the framework of selected irrigation performance criteria and indicators. The non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the perceptions of the farmers on the WUA at different survey periods. A Logit model was estimated to evaluate the relationship between the irrigation problems and the level of satisfaction from the WUA. The performance of the WUA with the indicators of utility, productivity, sustainability and financial efficiency was found to be positive; while the performance of adequacy was identified as poor. The farmers were generally satisfied of the WUA's operation, with their level of satisfaction improving over time. On the other hand, the farmers were not fully convinced that they had input with the system management. The initial design of the channel system and its maintenance were identified to be the key factors affecting user satisfaction. Overall, the Kestel WUA may be considered a successful example, thus supporting a promising future for PIM. Yet improved control and farmer education is needed for a superior performance of all indicators; and further enhanced farmer participation in management should be achieved in order to raise the level of farmer satisfaction.Water users association Participatory irrigation management Performance Kestel Turkey