Is Tanzania Ready for Large-Scale Organic Farming? Opportunities, Gaps, and the Road Ahead

The global organic food market has moved from a niche lifestyle choice to a mainstream economic force. Valued at over USD 135 billion today and projected to exceed USD 200 billion by 2030, organic food demand is being driven by rising health awareness, climate change concerns, stricter food safety regulations, and growing demand for traceable and ethically produced food. Europe, the Middle East, North America, and parts of Asia are actively increasing imports of certified organic products to meet consumer demand.

For Tanzania, this global shift presents a strategic opportunity. The country possesses fertile soils, diverse agro-ecological zones, reliable sunshine, and a farming population already accustomed to low chemical use. In many rural areas, farmers still rely on compost, animal manure, crop rotation, and traditional pest control methods. On the surface, Tanzania appears naturally positioned to benefit from organic agriculture.

However, scaling organic farming from scattered smallholder practices into a commercial, export-oriented, and economically sustainable sector requires more than natural advantages. It demands supportive policies, reliable certification systems, organised farmer structures, strong market linkages, and modern traceability mechanisms. The key question, therefore, is not whether Tanzania can produce organic food but whether it is ready to do so at scale.

Tanzania’s Current Organic Farming Landscape

Organic agriculture in Tanzania currently operates in a narrow and uneven ecosystem, largely driven by export demand and donor-supported initiatives. Certified organic production is concentrated in specific crops such as coffee, cocoa, tea, sesame, spices (cloves, vanilla, cardamom), and fresh horticultural products including fruits and vegetables.

Most certified organic farms are linked to export buyers, NGOs, or international development projects, particularly in regions like Kagera, Kilimanjaro, Mbeya, Morogoro, and Zanzibar. According to industry estimates, less than 1% of Tanzanian farmers are fully certified organic, despite millions practicing low-input agriculture.

This has given rise to what experts describe as “organic by default” farming smallholder farmers who use minimal synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, not because of organic market standards, but due to affordability constraints. While these farmers technically meet many organic principles, they lack certification, documentation, and market access, meaning they sell produce at conventional prices without benefiting from organic premiums.

As a result, Tanzania’s organic sector remains small, fragmented, and under-capitalized, despite strong underlying potential.

Key Constraints Holding Back Large-Scale Organic Farming

1. High Certification Costs and Limited Local Capacity

Organic certification remains one of the biggest bottlenecks. Certification costs typically range between USD 500 and USD 2,000 per farmer group per year, a prohibitive expense for most smallholders. In addition, Tanzania has very few accredited local organic certification bodies, forcing many producers to rely on foreign certifiers, which increases costs and administrative complexity.

Without affordable and accessible certification, farmers cannot legally access premium organic markets, even when they follow organic practices.

2. Weak Extension Services and Knowledge Gaps

Organic farming is knowledge-intensive. It requires expertise in soil fertility management, composting, biological pest control, crop rotation, and post-harvest handling. Tanzania’s public agricultural extension system remains overstretched, with limited specialization in organic methods.

As a result, farmers often struggle with yield consistency, pest outbreaks, and quality control, making it difficult to meet the strict standards required by export buyers.

3. Fragmented Smallholders and Aggregation Challenges

Tanzania’s agricultural sector is dominated by smallholder farmers cultivating less than two hectares. While this model supports livelihoods, it complicates volume aggregation, quality standardization, and traceability all critical for large organic buyers.

Exporters and processors often require consistent volumes, uniform quality, and traceable supply chains, which are difficult to achieve without strong cooperatives, contract farming models, or producer companies.

4. Weak Traceability and Digital Systems

Organic markets demand transparency from farm to shelf. However, digital traceability systems such as farm mapping, input tracking, and harvest records remain underdeveloped. Without reliable data, buyers face risks, and farmers lose credibility in premium markets.

Economic and Export Opportunity

Despite these constraints, the economic upside of organic farming is significant. Organic products typically attract price premiums of 20–40% in European, Middle Eastern, and high-end Asian markets. In some niche products such as spices, herbs, and specialty coffee, premiums can be even higher.

Tanzania has over 44 million hectares of arable land, much of it underutilized or suitable for organic conversion. At a time of rising youth unemployment and climate vulnerability, organic farming offers a triple dividend:

• Export revenue growth through premium agricultural markets
• Rural employment creation, particularly for youth and women
• Environmental sustainability through improved soil health, biodiversity, and reduced chemical pollution

In addition, organic farming aligns well with Tanzania’s climate adaptation goals, as organic soils retain more moisture and are more resilient to droughts and floods.

Policy, Market, and Investment Gaps

One of the biggest weaknesses is the absence of a dedicated national organic agriculture policy. Organic farming currently sits within general agricultural frameworks, without targeted incentives, standards, or funding mechanisms.

Key missing elements include:

• Subsidized or government-backed organic certification schemes
• Public investment in organic research and extension
• Clear export promotion strategies for organic products
• Incentives for private investors in organic processing and logistics

Without policy coordination, organic farming remains donor-dependent rather than market-driven.

Way Forward and Outlook

To unlock large-scale organic farming, Tanzania must move from potential to planning. First, the government should develop a National Organic Agriculture Policy that recognizes organic farming as a strategic export and sustainability sector. This should include support for local certification bodies, reduced certification costs, and integration of organic methods into extension services.

Second, farmer organization and aggregation must be strengthened through cooperatives, contract farming, and digital platforms that improve traceability and buyer confidence. Third, private sector participation in organic processing, cold chains, and branding must be encouraged to move beyond raw exports.

If these gaps are addressed, Tanzania is well positioned to become East Africa’s organic export hub within the next decade, supplying high-value food to global markets while creating jobs, protecting the environment, and strengthening rural economies.