The Quebec government in Canada has unveiled a new plan to increase the availability of local organic produce in stores, the Montreal Gazette has reported.
It said that it would invest around C$5m (US$4.92m) to help local growers to convert to organic and to educate the public about what organic actually means and the reasons for the elevated price.
The government reportedly aims to increase the amount of land devoted to production of local organic produce by about 20 per cent by 2013.
Approximately 45,000ha of land is devoted to organic produce in Quebec, according to the newspaper, and the goal is to add a further 10,000ha by 2013.
The government revealed that it would offer subsidies of up to C$10,000 (US$9,833) to help farmers make the conversion to organic.
