The sixth Latin American and Caribbean Meeting of Ecological Agriculture (ELAO): benefits and perspectives of the ecologic family agriculture, will be held on 13 –17 October 2011, in Cali, Colombia. More than 500 people, representing small producers, processors, traders, researchers, certifiers, consumers, policy-makers and supporters, are expected to attend, coming from a wide range of countries including El Salvador, Cuba, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia and Bolivia. The schedule includes activities such as workshops, a farmers’ market, a commercial fair and field visits.

The main speakers will be from the organisations, MAELA, CEDECO, AGROSOLIDARIA, GALCI/IFOAM and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Colombia. In addition, more than fifty small producers, researchers and policy-makers will talk about their experiences in organic production (coffee, vegetables, animal husbandry, etc), participatory guarantee systems (PGS), education and policies.

The ELAO aims to consolidate organic policies starting with the creation of a Colombian national movement and encouraging the interaction between public and private sectors. In addition, the ELAO will provide the opportunity to build cooperative alliances between regional movements like MAELA and GALCI (IFOAM regional group) and to make organic farming visible to the general public.

Additionally, the ELAO will host the third PGS Latin American forum with delegates from different countries like Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Costa Rica. This workshop will revise best practice in PGS in Latin America and consider the steps necessary to incorporate the system into national and regional policies.

Carlos Escobar

For more detailed information in Spanish, visit the ELAO’s website or write an This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it in English or Spanish.

The July/August issue of the Global PGS Newsletter published the English version of the report of a study by IFOAM PGS Committee member, Janet Villanueva. The study investigated the inclusion of Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS) within the legal framework of Latin American countries.

Seventeen countries were considered in the study, all of which have an organic farming regulation. Of these countries, seven actually include PGS in their law or resolution. These countries are Bolivia, Brazil, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Mexico, Paraguay and Uruguay. However, conditions for acceptance differ between the seven countries. For example: