{"id":433291,"date":"2011-05-31T10:46:41","date_gmt":"2011-05-31T10:46:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/2011\/05\/31\/organic-farming-ensures-crop-quality-safe-environment\/"},"modified":"2011-05-31T10:46:41","modified_gmt":"2011-05-31T10:46:41","slug":"organic-farming-ensures-crop-quality-safe-environment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/05\/31\/organic-farming-ensures-crop-quality-safe-environment\/","title":{"rendered":"Organic Farming Ensures Crop Quality, Safe Environment"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Tanzania Daily News<\/a> (Dar\u00a0es\u00a0Salaam)<\/p>\n

Gasirigwa Sengiyumva<\/p>\n

29 May 2011<\/p>\n

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If someone makes five dishes of food but they all taste like grass, whereas another makes one dish that tastes better than anything you’ve had before, which one will you go for?<\/p>\n

A lot of people would pay for quality and wont mind the price if it’s still worth it, plus the fact that you will always have repeat patronage if your products have quality.<\/p>\n

But the quality of food products isn’t a matter of processing and packaging only, it also depends on the quality of raw materials.<\/p>\n

Few days ago, in a business conference in Dar es Salaam, I bumped into a local wine producer who talked boldly on the importance of organically grown crops.<\/p>\n

Bavon Ndumbati, Export Coordinator for Tanzania Distilleries Limited (TDL), says there is a need for local farmers to be told and made aware of the wealth contained in the naturally grown crops.<\/p>\n

“There are areas where soil fertility is still intact and at no point should they entertain the use of fertilizer.<\/p>\n

The grapes produced in Dodoma, are some of the finest in the world. You know why? Because they are organically grown,” tells Ndumbati.<\/p>\n

He says it is a scientific fact that the natural habitat; the fertility of the soil and weather conditions under which these grapes are grown makes it chemical free, sweet and tasty.<\/p>\n

This could be the reason why foreign commercial farmers and wine brewers such as Italians and South Africans are now very much interested in this venture.<\/p>\n

They are fast establishing farms in Dodoma because of this secret while authorities are steadfastly preaching on the use of fertilizers.<\/p>\n

“Biologically and Chemically grown crops have distorted quality, farmers need to know this”, says Athumani Kavumo, an agriculture entrepreneur.<\/p>\n

Mr Kavumo says organic farming not only keeps the quality of the crop high but also helps in conserving micro organisms responsible for soil fertility.<\/p>\n

The question of fertilizer tampering with quality came up again when I talked to flour millers in the city recently. The government has invited local millers to buy maize from the National Reserve in order to cut down prices of maize flour at retail level.<\/p>\n

Most millers declined the offer citing several reasons, which from a business perspective, they are right.<\/p>\n

Mr William Sige of Mama Anna millers says the quality of maize was doubtful and that it was a problem in the market, causing preference for maize from Dodoma and Singida, which is organically produced and could stay long without expiring, unlike that from Mtwara, Iringa, Mbeya and Ruvuma.<\/p>\n

Combination of factors including excessive use of fertilizers has exhausted soil fertility in these areas to the extent that without it, farms can hardly produce.<\/p>\n

“We order maize straight from the farmer. The one that is produced without use of fertilizers,” said Minja Greyson from Azan Millers,adding that there was no reason why they should go for low quality maize which,<\/p>\n

when packed, doesn’t take long to expire.<\/p>\n

Consumers hear and read about organic farming but they are not always sure what that means. They sometimes question what ‘makes’ food organic — and why it is more expensive than other foods. They may be puzzled by the typically higher cost of these foods, wondering why this should be so as the benefits of such foods may be perceived as being not worth the extra expense.<\/p>\n

“When you truly consider the benefits of organic food, you will look past the rice cakes and organic vegetables and realize that it is an actual change in your way of thinking (about health and the environment) and lifestyle,” reads a line in a medical journal.<\/p>\n

Essentially, organic food is any food product that is grown in organicallycertified land without any chemical treatments — either in the form of fertilizers or pesticides. All the substances that go into growing organic food — substances that are put in the ground or on the plants — must come from natural sources. Indeed, there must not be any chemical additives in the growing processes; not even through accidental application.<\/p>\n

“Even though the yield of a field may be reduced due to the lack of chemicalfertilizer use or that the crop has a higher price due to low supply, it is important that we are assured that what is grown is truly organic food,” says health issues author Lorna Mathews.<\/p>\n

Mathews adds that, to improve their crop, growers have previously utilized chemically-enhanced fertilizers and pesticides. Also, because they were cheap, this was the favoured way of enhancing and protecting crops for years.<\/p>\n

Many insect intruders were kept away by using pesticides. But this happened without regard for what was organic food — and in complete disregard for the surrounding water supplies.<\/p>\n

History tells us that, before the chemical products were developed, farmers used natural resources to provide the world with food supplies and they had no notion of what organic food was — and why it was good for them.<\/p>\n

It was only after using chemically-treated fertilizers for many years that people are now realizing they should be utilizing less and less of these, because ‘natural’ is not only good for them, but for the planet as well.<\/p>\n

Consider an untouched forest in which leaves fall to the ground and slowly degrade into natural fertilizer to help the growth of other trees.<\/p>\n

Natural predators keep insect pests from destroying the new growths and without any interference, the growth continues. This could be a good picture of what organic food is and how the cycle of returning everything to Mother Earth can help provide healthier foods, as well as a healthier planet. There are many contributing factors as to why our health and the Earth are in crisis.<\/p>\n

However, we can all benefit from taking control: being conscious of what we are putting in on our bodies and aware of what is going into our environment, experts point out.<\/p>\n

“By using organic and natural products, you are making healthy decisions for yourself and the Earth — and taking preventive measures for a healthy future. By making this choice, you will greatly reduce the amount of toxins and chemicals your body must defend against,on a daily basis,” according to health experts.<\/p>\n

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\nOrganic Farming Ensures Crop Quality, Safe Environment<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tanzania Daily News (Dar\u00a0es\u00a0Salaam) Gasirigwa Sengiyumva 29 May 2011 If someone makes five dishes of food but they all taste like grass, whereas another makes one dish that tastes better than anything you’ve had before, which one will you go for? A lot of people would pay for quality and wont mind the price if it’s still worth it, plus the fact that you will always have repeat patronage if your products have quality. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":433292,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-433291","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-local-news"},"yoast_head":"\nOrganic Farming Ensures Crop Quality, Safe Environment - Ghanamma.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/05\/31\/organic-farming-ensures-crop-quality-safe-environment\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Organic Farming Ensures Crop Quality, Safe Environment - Ghanamma.com\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"Tanzania Daily News (Dar\u00a0es\u00a0Salaam) Gasirigwa Sengiyumva 29 May 2011 If someone makes five dishes of food but they all taste like grass, whereas another makes one dish that tastes better than anything you've had before, which one will you go for? 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