The role of a civil society organization in the development of the domestic organic market in Turkey

Summary

In this paper, we report of a case from Turkey where a civil society organization took an active role in influencing laws, regulations and their implementations regarding organic agriculture and the marketing of organic products. Although the country’s climate and biodiversity is suitable for organic agriculture, the domestic market remained underdeveloped; the organic sector was directed mainly towards exports. By establishing the first marketplace solely for certified organic products in 2006, a non-governmental organization became the locomotive of the domestic sector. The process that leads to the 100% organic bazaar exhibits a contingent characteristic where particularly social and symbolic capital were mobilized by the NGO together with a framing of positive ‘ecological living’ discourse and therefore contributing to the 'organic' movement.