Some 600.000 hectares of Serbian territory can be used to grow organic food, which is an export opportunity for the country, Agriculture Minister Sasa Dragin said Tuesday in Pozarevac, eastern Serbia.

He visited a food and agricultural produce fair and announced that organic food production would be increased in Valjevo, western Serbia, over the course of this year.

The campaign is the result of the ministry's ambition to promote organic food and turn it into a national brand.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture data, 2.876 hectares were employed in organic food production in 2009, but 488 of those had been certified, while 2.388 were still in the process of conversion.