Conventional Dairy Farmers Converting to Organic Dairy Production in Turkey

Abstract

Organic agriculture is a production system that sustains the health of soils, ecosystems, and people. It relies on ecological processes, biodiversity, and cycles adapted to local conditions, rather than the use of inputs with adverse effects. Organic agriculture combines tradition, innovation and science to benefit the shared environment and promote fair relationships and a good quality of life for all involved.The four principles of organic agriculture are: • Sustaining and enhancing the health of the soil, plants, animals, humans, and the planet as one and indivisible. • It should be based on living ecological systems and cycles, and work with them, emulate them and help sustain them.• Building on relationships that ensure fairness with regard to the common environment and life opportunities.Pol. J. Environ. Stud. Vol. 24, No. 4 (2015), 1543-1551 Original Research Conventional Dairy Farmers Converting to Organic Dairy Production in TurkeyTayfun Cukur* AbstractOrganic agriculture is a form of agricultural production in which chemical input is not used and where each step from production to consumption is controlled and certified. Organic agriculture is focused on realizing agricultural activities without polluting soil, air, and water sources. In addition, organic agriculture is an environment-friendly production form that protects plants, animals, and human health. Therefore, adopting and applying organic agriculture methods is increasingly being considered by farmers. There are three primary aims of this study: to determine whether or not dairy farmers are aware of organic agriculture, to determine farmers' tendency toward organic production, and to determine the effective factors on farmers' tendencies to produce organic milk. In the study, probit analysis was used with the purpose of determining the factors on farmers' tendencies to produce organic milk in the future. According to the conducted probit analysis results, a positive relationship exists between considering enlarging the farm, applying innovations, being informed about organic agriculture, and farmers' tendencies to produce organic milk in the future. On the other hand, a negative relationship was found between the distance of the farm to the Milas district center, educational level of the farmers, and farmers' tendencies to produce organic milk in the future. It was determined that an important part of the participating farmers had information about organic agriculture. However, the main reason for farmers to tend not to produce organic milk in the future is not having sufficient information about organic agriculture. Therefore, courses and seminars should be held to increase the knowledge level of farmers in the district about organic stockbreeding. In addition, education and extension activities aimed at organic milk production should be organized. Thus farmers with insufficient information about organic agriculture and those with no information about organic agriculture would be informed about this subject.

Factors Affecting Wheat Farmers’ Attitudes toward Organic Farming

“…Thus, the evidence of the positive effect of education on attitudes toward organic farming is indisputable. The findings of this study are, however, inconsistent with that of Cukur [13] and Khaledi et al [32]. The literature review has a unanimous agreement with respect to the assertion that larger households have a better attitude toward organic farming in comparison to smaller households [11,18,34].…”

“…In contrast to these studies, [13,32] show that the education levels of farmers have been found to have no significant effect on the probability of adopting organic farming practices. According to previous studies, organic farming has a greater need for labour in comparison to conventional farming [33].…”

“…In this context, many researchers consider organic farming -a system to produce food with minimal harm to ecosystems, animals, and humans -as a solution; it is seen as a strategy for ensuring food security, biodiversity, and the sustainability of the environment while countering the negative impacts of conventional agriculture [10][11]. Organic farming aims at conserving water and soil, and it requires the use of natural manure, avoiding the employment of fertilizers and pesticides in the production process; specialists argue that organic products are richer in vitamins, nutrients, and antioxidants, which are beneficial for health [9,[11][12][13].…”

“…According to Zingore et al [37], wealthier farmers own more land. Some studies such as Oluwasusi [11], Cukur [13], Karki et al [20], Chouichom and Yamao [30], and Adebayo and Oladele [34] show that the attitude toward organic farming has a positive correlation with farm size. However, Alzaidi et al [22] and Khaledi et al [32] indicate that an inverse relationship exists between farm size and the attitudes of the farmers toward organic farming.…”

“…Cukur [13] and Läpple [25] reported that a positive relationship exists between being informed about organic farming and farmers' decisions to produce organic milk. Therefore, access to information, which is one of the most important factors creating a positive attitude toward organic farming, has been mentioned across many studies.…”