At present, Togo is the leading West African exporter of organic products to the European Union. According to data from the European Commission relayed by Commodafrica, in 2018, Togo exported 22,123 tons of agricultural organic products to the EU. This is more than Ghana, the second largest exporter with 14,948 tons, Côte d’Ivoire (14,392 tons), and Burkina Faso (12,456 tons). Last in the ranking were Nigeria and Gambia.

Of course Africa, West Africa especially, contributes very marginally to organic exports to Europe where demand for these products is on the rise (valued at about €34 billion in 2017). The market is currently largely dominated by China and Southern American countries.

Regarding Togo, it is worldwide the EU’s 31st exporter contributing only 0.7% of the Union’s imports. Shares of Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso in this market respectively are 0.5%, 0.4% and 0.4%.

Togofirst.com reminds us that Data from the Organic Farming Research Institute (FIBL) shows how a little less than 37,000 farmers are into organic farming in Togo. This is only 4.83% of all farmers active in the sector across the continent. In the West African country, nearly 40,000 ha are dedicated to the sector (1% of all cultivated land).