Mauritius has launched the Household Organic Garden project at the Farmers Service Centre of Union Park, with an aim to develop and encourage organic farming in the country
Mahen Seeruttun, minister of agro-industry and food security, said that the aim is to transform Mauritius into an organic island in the near future, through different projects implemented by the Ministry of Agro-Industry and Food Security, as well as other institutions.
Citizens will thus be encouraged to cultivate, as far as possible and without the use of any chemical product, vegetables in their backyard for their own consumption.
Seeruttun highlighted that several incentives are being offered to shift from a conventional method to an organic one. One of these methods is the bio-farming scheme whereby the government is financing all costs associated with the registration, certification and audit for those holders of a Bio-farming Development Certificate who would wish to acquire the international organic label for their farm produce.
The launch of the Household Organic Garden project is part of a sensitisation campaign so as to encourage and enable the population to use the organic method of cultivation.
Union Park has been chosen for the launching of the project, following several surveys carried out by the Food and Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (FAREI), as its climate is favourable and many inhabitants have space in their backyard to implement this method of agriculture.
FAREI will provide training, which is approved by the Mauritius Qualifications Authority, to around 200 inhabitants of Union Park, before implementing the project in other regions around the island.
During the launching ceremony, several beneficiaries received a starter kit to set up their own organic garden while certificates were also awarded to some organic growers who satisfy all required criteria in organic agriculture.
