The concept of Organic Agriculture (OA) has first emerged in Tanzania in the early
1990s. Since then it received growing attention from development organizations, especially
as a potential approach to enhance livelihoods and sustainable food production
(Bakewell-Stone, 2008:25f).
In Tanzania, agriculture is still the main source of income for around 80% of the
population and accounts for 27.7 % of the GDP. The sector is dominated by smallscale1,
predominantly rain-fed subsistence farming facing various challenges like variable
weather conditions, health shocks, pests, and limited access to agriculture support
services, inputs and technologies as well as to markets which often result in food
insecurity and rural poverty (CIA, 2014). The National Strategy for Growth and Reduction
of Poverty II addresses these issues and promotes modernization of the agriculture
sector, skills development for farmers and involvement of the private sector.
These interventions go along with a shift from small- to medium- or large-scale farming
to increase productivity and growth of the agriculture sector and finally improve
national food security (URT, 2010). On international level, there is a considerable
discussion ongoing about the adequacy of the dominant model of agricultural
intensification and growth, which relies on increased use of capital inputs, such as
fertilizer and pesticides (IAASTD, 2009).