India
Organic farming is largely done on a small-level in India. There are about 5,661 organic farms managing 41,000 hectares of organic farmland. Much of the production comprises organic herbs, spices, tea, tropical fruit and vegetables. The bulk of the certified organic products are exported with Japan and Europe the major destinations. Significant amounts of organic herbs & spices and mangoes are exported to Europe, especially for use by food processors.
Organic food production in India is estimated to be valued at US $18 million with the bulk going to export markets. An Indian market for organic foods is developing, albeit at a slow pace due to poor consumer demand. Much of the organic foods sold within India is non-certified and marketed directly by farmers to consumers via farm shops and / or farmers markets.
Indian standards for organic food production are based on IFOAM basic standards. The export-orientation of the industry is responsible for many foreign certification bodies to operate in India and these include SKAL (Holland) and Naturland (Germany). The first and major Indian certification body is Indocert, which was founded in March 2002. Indocert has collaborations with the Swiss organisations FiBL (Research Institute of Organic Agriculture) and Bio-Inspecta (Inspection body).
The Indian government announced the National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP) in May 2000. The aim of the programme is to encourage organic farming as a form of sustainable farming, preserve the environment, reduce the use of agrochemicals, and promote exports and rural development. The ‘Indian Organic Logo’ was launched by the government in July 2002 and it aims to place this on all organic foods made in India.
There is a big push towards organic farming in India, much of it is government driven. Some of the important developments that are occurring include:

●The government is setting up regional centres of National Institute of Organic Farming (NIOF) in Bangalore, Nagpur, Jabalpur, Hissar, Bhubaneswar and Imphal
●The Maharashtra state has set a target of 100,000 hectares of organic farmland in 2002 as part of its Krishi Saptak plan
●The Indian Spices Board is subsidising upto75 percent of the cost of certification for farmers converting to organic farming