Land used for organic farming in Taiwan could rise to 6,500 hectares by 2015, up from 5,951 hectares recorded in 2013, according to plans by the Council of Agriculture (COA).



The move is part of government efforts to increase organic farming through training programs and technical services that have helped expand organic farmland from just 2,356 hectares in 2008, the council said in a statement earlier this week.



The COA touted its achievements in the development of organic farming and said it plans to increase organic farmland to 15,000 hectares by 2020.



The council has been promoting the cultivation and sale of organic produce by helping set up 14 designated areas, 12 farming villages, 17 markets, 120 service counters and 140 online shops.



The efforts are part of a 10-year policy to promote and expand the supply chain for organic food, the COA said.



In addition, the council said its agricultural research and extension stations are also helping non-organic farmers to analyze soil fertility and guiding them to use chemical fertilizers properly and to cut the amount they spread on their fields.



Taiwanese farmers used about an average of 1.15 million metric tons of chemical fertilizer during the 2005-2007 period, an amount that had dropped to 1 million metric tons as of 2013, according to the council.







CNA