Federal Office for Agriculture and Food

Ferkel Ferkel Ferkel Source: www.oekolandbau.de/ BLE/ Dominic Menzler

Organic and sustainable farming

The overall idea of organic and sustainable farming is to manage business operations sustainably and in harmony with nature.

In this context an agricultural holding is primarily regarded as an organisational entity composed of man, animal, plant, and soil. With its objectives of

  • closed operational nutrient cycles wherever possible,
  • producing feed and nutrient supply on the farmer’s own farm,
  • maintaining and improving soil fertility,
  • properly implementing animal welfare and
  • providing social, ecological, and economic services for society,

it actively contributes to preserving ecosystems and biological diversity, protecting the soil, keeping water clean, and keeping impacts of climate change as provoked by agriculture to a minimum.

Germany is the biggest market for organic products in Europe. Demand for organic food and sustainably produced products have been rising continuously for fifteen years. As the importance of the organic sector continues to grow, the tasks that each individual farmer and processor must cope with grow more complex and demanding.

What is required is in-depth know-how, combined with a special understanding of the complex correlations on which farming, processing and marketing of products are based. To meet these growing demands stakeholders in this sector rely on sound technical support and advice as well as practical research to focus on the particular challenges of this sector along the entire value-added chain.

As project initiator the BLE provides support by managing research and development projects and projects for the transfer of knowledge in the organic farming sector, primarily through the Federal Scheme for Organic Farming and Other Forms of Sustainable Agriculture (BÖL) on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Food and Agriculture.