What plays an important role in Estonia being in the world’s top according to European Food Safety Authority’s research, is a big proportion of land being used for organic production, Roomet Sõrmus, Head of Estonian Chamber of Agriculture and Commerce, told business portal Ärigeenius.
About a quarter of Estonia’s million hectares of agricultural land is farmed organically. This means that Estonia is in Europe’s top 3 together with Austria and Sweden.
In addition, about 400,000 hectares of farmland is covered by (and the country’s core of agricultural enterprises have joined) the Environmentally-friendly management support which does not ban the use of pesticides but has the condition that glyphosate-based ones cannot be used between seeding or planting and harvesting. According to Sõrmus, this has practically stopped the use of glyphosates.
Of course, Estonia’s climate also has a positive role to play in stopping pests naturally. „Estonia’s winters are a really good biological way to fight plant diseases and pests,“ Sõrmus said. „Many of the pests and diseases cannot spread as quickly as in areas more south.“
In addition, even within the European Union, the list of pesticides that can be used in a particular member state, differs. This means, that in Poland, for example, the number of pesticides that strawberry producers can use, is significantly higher than in Estonia.
A map of organic land in Estonia can be found here. The full article (in Estonian) can be read here.
Estonia has vast quantities of untouched nature, a low population density, and a fast growing organic farming culture, combined with determined and tech-savvy minds. Read more about the Food sector in Estonia or send us a request for e-Consulting.
