I think anyone would have a very difficult time to provide
convincing evidence that,in general, certified land is worth
any more in monetary terms in the open market. In the case of
conventional farm land, it's been very tough to show that the
market rewards conservation investments by farmers, or other
activities that would be expected to improve the productive
capacity of their land. There are exceptions (e.g. installation
of drainage, where it is needed).
Some might also think that certified land would be more
valuable because it allows the product of the land to claim
higher prices (premiums) in the market. Here the problem is
that the premiums are not generally available. Sure, many
farmers are able to consistently sell at a premium, but this
is not the case for everyone. The result is that there is not
a reliable relationship between product and price on which to
justify a higher price for the land.
On the example in British Columbia ($4000/acre) .., this
does not sound too out of line for good quality land in the
right location ,, probably lower mainland
But, it is not indicative for British Columbia,
just a reflection of a local situation.
Finally, is it the land that is certified ? .. not really ..it's
the whole package including the farmer, who is probably the
most important component ... if the farm is presently
certified, it just means that a new owner has a better
opportunity to be certified than otherwise .. the previous
operator would hopefully provide the new owner with the
existing farm plan etc. and potentially, theland could be
quickly re-certified under the new owner.
john henning
------------------- Original msg --------------
From: "Holly Born" <hollyb@ncatark.uark.edu>
To: sanet-mg@shasta.ces.ncsu.edu
Date: Thu, 16 Jul 1998 11:35:22 +0000
Subject: Farm land value & organic certification
Reply-to: hollyb@ncatark.uark.edu
Hello all!
Can anyone point me to sources of info on the value of farm land that
is certified organic relative to non-organic land values? Is land itself
certifiable, or only the products from that land? If land can be
certified, can anyone give me a rough idea of what is required?
Iwould sure appreciate any info on the subject of organic premiums
for land, since it was requested by a farmer in Iowa (who says that he visited
with
a farmer from Vancouver ,BC, who paid $4000/acre for land "supposedly certified
organic").
Thanks to everyone,
Holly Born
Holly Born, Technical Specialist
ATTRA (Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas)
(501) 442-9824, 1-800-346-9140
Fax:(501) 442-9842 E-mail:hollyb@ncatark.uark.edu
Web:http://www.attra.org
To Unsubscribe: Email majordomo@ces.ncsu.edu with "unsubscribe sanet-mg".
To Subscribe to Digest: Email majordomo@ces.ncsu.edu with the command
"subscribe sanet-mg-digest".