Organic food marketing in Pakistan and it’s potential, Principles of Marketing, organic food in pakistan

Today’s life is very competitive, challenging and demanding. Consumers are very much concerned about their health and the food choice to stay healthy. A health concern has influenced the consumer attitude toward organic food.

When one talks about healthy eating, the first word that comes to mind is ‘organic’, a trend that is increasingly becoming popular among Pakistanis.

For Pakistanis, opting for organic food doesn’t mean that we are being fashionable or following Western fads; it mean that we’re going back to the basics. Organic food is not an alien concept for us. Our forefathers were all organic farmers and used natural fertilizers and natural methods of pest control.

In modern times, organic farming entails the use of organically approved pesticides and fertilizers to maintain soil productivity and control pests. Organic farmers employ methods like crop rotation, green manuring, and use compost that is made by the farmers themselves.

Organic products market

Organic products have premium market which make not available to the whole

population due to prices constraints. Some consumers are ready to pay more for food that has superior quality. Consumer demand for organic products is gradually increasing due to concern about the environments and health implications of industrial agriculture although there is no relation between consumer and producer but the poor financial performance of organic farming reflects the financial problems of small farmers in some cases due to lack of access to premium market helps. Such difficulties have forced out from the business the small organic farmers.

It is possible that organic farmers market their products directly but it requires more  labour and organisation. Organic food are supplied to supermarket also provide home delivery. Seasonal production and regional markets remain an important objective in organic farming. We have to maintain National Organic Standards Board to decide the criteria of what is organic? International movements (IFOAM) has formulated basic standards to define organic production. Food containing products of gene technology should be labelled, so consumer have an option, Bioethics influences the marketability

of products derived from biotechnology.

It is the consumers who decide on the prospects of biotechnological markets. Organic food should be labelled that consumer products not derived from genetically engineered varieties.

In Pakistan the choices are limited. This is where the “Khalis Food Market” truly stands out as one of the few avenues promoting organic produce and consequently a healthier lifestyle in Pakistan.

Potential for Organic Farming in Pakistan

• If proper planning and fore sighted measures are timely taken, Pakistan has one of the greatest potential among the developing countries.

• Millions of acres of highly fertile and productive-virgin lands under the command of five mega dams Akhori, Bhasha-Diamer, Kalabagh, Kuramtangi and Munda to be built by 2016 at a cost of $ 25 billions can be the potential areas for delineation as ‘organic farming’ areas.

• The ‘organic farming’ will have a direct impact to alleviate poverty by providing large scale employment to unskilled semi-skilled labor.

• Pakistan’s current export earnings from vegetables and fruits to Europe and neighbouring countries stand at 115.6 million dollars during 01. With domestic environment conducive to producing organic vegetables, fruits and livestock products, Pakistan can be introduced as a supplier of organic food items by launching a powerful marketing campaign in international market.