Organic agricultural products from East Africa will soon find a place on the shelves of major international supermarkets following a decision by the three states to harmonise standards by the end of next year.

According to Eustace Kiarie, the national co-ordinator of the Kenya Organic Agriculture Network (KOAN), a regional meeting has been scheduled for this week in Nairobi to discuss and endorse the process. The meeting brings together representatives from the KOAN, the Uganda Organic Agriculture Network and the Tanzania Organic Agriculture Network. Also expected are members from the three bureaus of standards and inspection certification bodies.

The meeting is expected to examine the national standards already in place and to identify areas that can be harmonised to come up with a single document. A regional draft and a governance structure have already been developed and the first East African Organic Standards (EAOS) is expected to be in place by early 2007.

The standards are expected to enhance regional trade and foster co-operation between the three East African neighbours. By harmonising the standards, East Africa will also be able to negotiate as a bloc with the EU markets.

"In the case of East Africa, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda are natural trading partners, and this project, in addition to making international markets more accessible, will strengthen trade in organic products between these countries," Mr Kiarie told The EastAfrican last week.

Currently, each of the three East African countries exports its agricultural products based on its individual standards and those set by the European markets.

The initiative to harmonise standards was launched in Kampala in October 2004 when a working group was established. The group will now be strengthened by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements, which support the development of regional organic standards to aid in the harmonisation of trade in organic products.

The East African Organic Standards project pools together the expertise and experience of a wide range of stakeholders at the national and regional levels, and builds upon work that is already underway in the region, in particular through the Export Promotion of Organic Products from Africa project.

According to Mr Kiarie, consumers are today more aware of standards and that understanding of organic agriculture is growing fast.

KOAN, he said, has developed organic standards. "KOAN is not a certifier but the custodian of standards. KOAN is proactive in the harmonization of the organic standards in the EA region," said Mr Kiarie.

According to Mr Kiarie, all agro products are currently exported without differentiation as to whether they are organic or conventional.

"The only statistics we have are on certified land for 2005 and we are updating it for 2006 to see the changes in which regard we can quantify growth," he added.

So far Kenya has 1,600 hectares of land certified under organic farming and some 600 hectares is under conversion.