Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

ORGANIC AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION

Strategic objective

The strategic objective of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Water Administration and other institutions with duties in this field is to guarantee the increase in the quantity and quality of organic production. This is not only due to the fact of generating economic efficiency (increased income) but also guaranteeing an increase in the quality of life for consumers. On the other hand, organic production is considered as an advantage of increasing the possibility of export in the Region and beyond, thus enabling the increase of the competitiveness of Albanian products as well as influencing the reduction of import and the increase of export.

Likewise, Article 95 of the Stabilization-Association Agreement establishes that cooperation between Albania and the European Union will aim at the modernization and restructuring of Albanian agriculture and the agro-industrial sector, as well as support for the gradual alignment of Albanian legislation and practices with the rules and community standards.

This objective will be achieved through:

  • Strengthening the institutional system of the organic production sector (production, trade, consumption) and control systems related to it;
  • Strengthening capacities in organic production to minimize waste in the environment;
  • Improving the organic production legislation and its implementation.

Actual situation

The Ministry of Agriculture, in the Sectoral Strategy of Agriculture and Food 2007-2013, has considered organic agriculture as a special focus of agricultural policies, based on this and the framework of the Action Plan for Organic Agriculture drawn up by the Ministry of Agriculture (2006) where identified five priority areas as the basis of the development of the strategy of this sector:

i.) the drafting, consolidation and implementation of a national policy for organic agriculture, which allows synergy with the relevant institutions and other relevant development policies;

ii.) the implementation of the national legislation on organic agriculture and the structuring of the national organic system;

iii). structuring the organic supply chain by facilitating conversion to organic agriculture (between farmers and processors) and increasing public awareness on the one hand, while on the other hand, encouraging market development for organic inputs and products;

iv) supporting scientific research, education and advisory services in organic agriculture in order to develop and consolidate a national knowledge system for organic agriculture;

v.) encouraging the integration of Albania in the international organic community and promoting national and international networking.

Based on the fact that Organic Agriculture in Albania has been operating for over a decade, becoming a sector of special importance for the Albanian economy and agricultural exports, MBZHRAU, in support of it, drafted the Law in 2004. No. 9199, dated 26/02/2004 “On the production, processing, certification and marketing of “Bio” products, a law which has been approved and applied since this year (2004): published in Official Gazette No. 20/2004, dated 05/04/2004, Page: 1045;

Albanian Law No. 9199, dated 26/02/2004 “On the production, processing, certification and marketing of “Bio” products, aims to promote organic production in Albania, create the necessary legal framework and determine the conditions of production, processing, transport, certification and control of agricultural and food products of plant or animal origin, which are produced, processed and/or imported and marketed as “Bio” products.

This law regulates the establishment of the State Organic Production Commission (KSHPO), defines the specific conditions of organic production, grants temporary permission for the use of materials not listed in the Annexes, defines the conditions for the labeling of “Bio” products, the procedures for administrative offenses as well as the sanctions that are taken for them.

The Organic Agriculture questionnaires have been entered into the farm registration system, whose data is also collected and processed by INSTAT.

Starting from 2001, various projects have helped to raise and promote organic agriculture in Albania, the most important of which have been the Sustainable Agriculture Support in Albania (SASA) project (2001 – 2011), implemented by FiBL Switzerland; the PAB-Interreg IIIA project (2004 – 2007) (Integrated Project for dissemination and technical assistance in the implementation of organic production methods) implemented by IAM-Bari; as well as Bio-84/01 (Balkans provision for the Italian Partecipation in Stabilization, Reconstruction and Development of the countries of the Balkan area) for the training of technical experts in organic agriculture, in support of rural development and food emergencies in the Balkan region . Organic agriculture is benefiting from activities financed by foreign agencies and donors such as Oxfam, GTZ, SNV, FAO, etc.

The projects have helped to establish and strengthen associations of producers and the certifying body, recognition of organic production methods, improvement of services and technical structures in support of the development of organic agriculture and promotion of Albanian organic products in the most popular local markets and fairs and European.

The result of this assistance is the increase in the production and marketing capacities of organic products inside and outside the country, especially in the production of organic olive oil where “Shkalla” sh.p.k. has exported to Switzerland, Croatia, etc. and is ranked 6th among the top 100 oils listed in the World Catalog (2006). Likewise, “Gjikondi” sh.p.k. and “Musaj” sh.p.k. have been awarded national and international awards for the quality of their organic oil. USAID has been and is active in the promotion of Albanian organic products at fairs such as “BioFach” or those organized in the USA and other European countries. For more than two years, BiOL has evaluated Albanian oils with the “Gold” and “Silver” awards, namely “Musaj”, “Shkalla”, “IVAP”.

Among the products that come from cultivation, we can list as the most important, the olive tree, mainly for oil production, the vineyards for table and wine, vegetables and fruits. The size of the organic farms is higher than the average of Albania, namely 2.24 ha compared to 1.2 ha which is the average of the conventional farm.

Over 99% of the products that come from spontaneous collection are exported to USA, Germany, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Liechtenstein, Austria, Italy and other countries like Bulgaria and Turkey. However, the local market for organic products is expanding, especially in the direction of their processing, such as “Xherdo” sh.p.k. the interest of the collectors of these spontaneous plants has also increased for the certification of the grounds where these plants are grown and cultivated.

Several associations operate in Albania, where among the most active are: BioAdria and SHBO, which are members of IFOAM, for the fruit and vegetable sector, the EPCA association of Albanian medicinal plants and the association of olive oil producers (AOA).

Based on Article 4 of Law 9199/2004 on organic agriculture, domestic and foreign certification bodies are allowed to exercise certification activity for farms and operators operating in organic agriculture. These organizations must first be accredited. Accreditation of certification bodies is carried out by the General Directorate of Accreditation (DPA), which is a national accreditation body, recognized by the government to evaluate in accordance with international standards the technical competence of conformity assessment bodies.

DPA operates in accordance with Law No. 9824, dated 01/11/2007, “On Accreditation of conformity assessment bodies in RSH” and accreditation by DPA is carried out in accordance with the international standards established by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).

KSHPO, set up under MBZHRAU, is the state body responsible for the implementation and administration of the legislation and system of organic agriculture in Albania. KSHPO carries out:

  • recognition of certifying bodies and inspectors of organic production; registration of farmers’ requests for application to enter the organic production system;
  • supervision of the annual activity of certifying bodies; registration of organic production units after approval by the certification body chosen by the farm itself;
  • the updated publication of the list of names and addresses of production, processing and trading units of “Bio” products;
  • registration of domestic and foreign entities that export and import “Bio” products;
  • equipping these subjects with a certificate valid only for the case under review;
  • publishes the logo of certification bodies; organizes the annual qualification and testing of inspectors;
  • proposes models of forms that production units, certifying bodies and import/export entities must complete;
  • presents the decisions taken for the acceptance of the activity or the termination of cooperation contracts for certification bodies and inspectors, both local and foreign.

This Commission was created as an inter-institutional body, and consists of 9 members, as well as the secretariat consists of 3 members. The sector responsible for the activity of organic agriculture in MBZHRAU is the Plant Production Sector with one person. In addition, five Agricultural Technology Transfer Centers (QTTB), under MBZHRAU, and covering the entire territory of Albania.

In Law no. 10137, dated 11.5.2009 “For some changes in the legislation in force for licenses, authorizations and permits in the Republic of Albania, the temporary permit is replaced by a temporary authorization.”

Based on the above, according to law no. 9199, dated 26.2.2004 “For the production, processing, certification and marketing of organic products”, article 7, the State Commission of Organic Production (KSHPO) grants temporary authorization for:

a) the use of materials not listed in annexes II and III of this law,
b) the use of materials of non-agricultural origin (technological aids and additives) or of non-organic agricultural origin for processing, not listed in letter “D” and “E” of Annex II.

The inspection/certification organization Albinspekt is the first and only operator that provides an inspection and certification service for organic products according to national, private and European Standards (Albanian Law 9199/2004, private standard BioAdria and EU Regulation No. 834 /2007).

Albinspekt is a private joint-stock company, recognized by KSHPO, as a certifying organization based on Albanian Law No. 9199/2004 for “Bio” products as well as VKM No. 639, dated 14/05/2008 for the registration of certifying bodies as well as by the DPA in Albania. Albinspekt, also, was accredited during 2009 by DGA (Deutsche Gesellshaft fur Akkreditierung GmbH) according to the European norm EN 45011/1998, for the performance of the certification service of organic products in the fields of plant and animal production and processing. The main role of Albinspekt is to provide inspection/certification service as well as information regarding the principles and methods of organic production.

In Albania, 7 foreign certification bodies operate, such as: ICEA, BCS Öko-GarantieGmbH, BioInspecta AG, CERES GmbH, Control Union Certifications B.V., IMO CH, IMC srl. These foreign certifying bodies are recognized and accredited for certification of “bio” products in their countries of origin. Foreign certifying organizations perform certification based on Regulation No. 834/2007 of the EU, for the production and labeling of organic products as well as the American standard for organic products (NOP).

MBZHRAU cooperates with the certification body “Albinspekt” and since 2010 the registration of data for organic operators has started online and this cooperation will continue;

A special role in the development of the sector has been played by the policy of MBZHRAU in the inclusion of organic agriculture in national support schemes since 2008, the result of which is an increase in the number of organic operators, which in 2013 reached the figure of 137 farms. In total there are 126 cultivators; 25 are cultivators/processors; 14 are collectors and 17 are exporters. The certified area is 274,413 ha, of which the cultivated area is 440 ha and 273,972 are wild medicinal/aromatic plants (source MBZHRAU and Abinspekt).

For the year 2009-2011, a cooperation agreement (for the third phase) was signed between MBZHRAU and the SASA project (Sustainable Agriculture Support in Albania): “A bilateral project of Co-operation and development” related to organic agriculture and the approximation of legislation in this field;

MBZHRAU is cooperating with line Ministries and other national and international organizations such as the Ministry of Environment, IBB, CIHEAM, etc., regarding waste management and monitoring of nitrates in the soil, as well as for building institutional capacities for the approximation of EU legislation -‘s;

Bylaws:

• Decision of the Council of Ministers (VKM), No. 388, dated 31/05/2005 “On the composition, operation, rights and duties of the State Commission of Organic Production” (Official Gazette, No. 41/2005, dated 13/06/2005);
• VKM No. 145/2006, dated 08/03/2006 “On some changes in decision No. 388, dated 31/05/2005 of the Council of Ministers “On the composition, operation, rights and duties of the State Commission of Organic Production” (Official Gazette, No. 20/2006, dated 17/03/2006);
• VKM No. 639, dated 14/05/2008 “On the structure, functioning, acceptance criteria of the necessary documentation and obligations of the Certifying bodies” (Official Gazette, No. 82/2008, dated 06/06/2008);
• Order of the Minister of the Ministry of Education and Culture No. 306, dated 06/21/2006 “On the establishment of the State Commission of Organic Production as well as the establishment and operation of the Secretariat of this Commission”;
• Order of the Minister of the Ministry of Education and Culture No. 131, dated 04/17/2009 “On the establishment of the State Organic Production Commission as well as the establishment and functioning of the Secretariat of this Commission” (this Order has changed Order No. 306, dated 06/21/2006);
• Order No. 173, dated 21/05/2009 “On payment fees for the registration of certification bodies and inspection bodies”.

Institutional structure

The institutions involved in organic production are the Ministry of Agriculture and its dependent institutions; Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education and their dependent institutions.

In relation to the Ministry of Agriculture and its dependent institutions, with the creation of the National Food Authority, which began its activity on September 1, 2010, the separation of policy-making/law-making functions from implementing ones is guaranteed.

The policy-making functions are carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Water Administration, part of which is the Plant and Livestock Production Sector in the General Directorate of Agricultural Policies. This Directorate is responsible for drafting policies, strategies and legislation for plant production, including organic, the main functions of production and marketing of agricultural/organic products within the standards, as well as ensuring the competitiveness of products in the market where the organic product meets all the rules and requirements of production and trading according to the norms of the EU and the legislation of the field in force, promotes the increase of the range of agricultural/organic products in the local, regional and wider market. It also helps in the development and implementation of integrated agricultural/organic production safety policies from “farm to table”.

The State Agency for Seeds and Seedlings (ESFFF), an institution subordinate to MBZHRAU, ensures the purity and rules of production, certification, registration and trading of planting and propagating plant material, including organic. In ESHFF there is also a reference laboratory for this purpose. in the service of this goal, it is worth mentioning the drafting of the new law no. 10 416, dated 07.04.2011 “On planting and propagating plant material and by-laws in its implementation.

AKU manages the control of planting and propagating material, including organic, in the market, customs, collection/storage points, etc., to ensure compliance with trading rules and phytosanitary purity of planting and propagating/organic material. The Institute of Food Safety and Veterinary Medicine (ISUV) is the Reference Center in the control of food safety and quality, including organic food.

AKU also carries out checks for the assessment of the quality of fertilizers, before they are placed on the market and during trading, to guarantee the protection of life, health and the environment as well as the economic interests of farmers, as essential rules of organic production.

In QTTB-Fushë Krujë is the reference laboratory for soil analysis (toxic residues or other substances unacceptable for organic production). In addition to the above, this laboratory performs analyzes for water and fertilizers used in vegetation.

Tirana Agricultural University (UBT), through the Department of Plant Protection, helps in analyzing pests and diseases for the successful implementation of the integrated fight in this direction (IPM), so important in organic production. An equally important role here is played by the Genetic Bank (UBT) for genetic resources.

Short-term legislative measures

Within the year 2014, the further alignment of Albanian legislation with that of the Community and its full implementation is aimed at drafting a new Law “On Organic Agriculture” for the amendment of Law No. 9199, dated 26/02/2004 “On the production, processing, certification and marketing of “Bio” products with Council Regulation (EC) No. 834/2007, dated June 28, 2007 “on organic production and labeling of organic products, as well as the repeal of Regulation (EEC) No. 2092/91 and Commission Regulation (EC) No. 889/2008, dated September 5, 2008 defines the rules for the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No. 834/2007 “on organic production and labeling of organic products related to organic production, labeling and control”;

Currently, with the drafting of the new draft strategy for Rural Development, within the framework of IPA II (2014-2020), organic agriculture is gaining even more importance with its inclusion in the support measures of IPA.

Perspectives of the Sector and “BIO” Products

Although currently the prices of “BIO” products, with small exceptions, are the same as those of conventional products, the farmer who produces “BIO” has guaranteed the sale. The Albanian consumer’s interest in these products is growing, which has led to the birth of the first micro markets of “BIO” fruit/vegetable products, especially indigenous fruit/vegetables.
ADDED VALUE OF QUALITY – certification:

  • Organic
  • Integrated Production
  • Protection of Designation of Origin (PDO)
  • Geographical Protection Indicators (PGI)
  • Traditional Specialty Guaranteed (TSGs)
  • Public information:
  • The public is informed about product quality and food safety through labeling
  • Why is it important for Albania?

Consumers have the right to information!

“Bio” products with waste control in the environment, among others, guarantee the preservation of Biodiversity and play an important role in the development of Albanian agrotourism.

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