BELBES, Egypt (AFP) -- Beyond the cusp where the Nile's fertile delta once faded into sand, chamomile and cotton now grow thanks to an Egyptian organic farming firm called Sekem.

Praised internationally for nurturing both the land and those who till it, Sekem is doing its share to tackle problems plaguing Egypt like pollution, poverty, illness and illiteracy.

Taking its cue from its namesake hieroglyph meaning "vitality of the sun," the firm aims not only to replenish the soil with life-giving nutrients but also to make its employees healthier, better educated and more productive.

"We dream about a new Egypt where all these ideas of sustainable development are living," Sekem's managing director Helmy Abouleish told AFP atop a sunny bench amid fields of deep red blossoms and an adult learning center.

Sekem produces herbal medicines and teas, fruit and vegetables, all untainted by pesticides, for sale locally, in Europe and the United States. It also manufactures chemical-free Egyptian cotton clothing, including Abouleish's ecru shirt and slacks.

Flush with commercial success abroad, the farming conglomerate has garnered international respect for its business philosophy.

In October, it ranked among five recipients of the Stockholm-based Right Livelihood Award, the "Alternative Nobel Prize", established by Swedish-German writer and former European parliamentarian Jakob von Uexkull. The award praised Sekem for combining "profitability and engagement in world markets with a humane and spiritual approach to people and respect for the natural environment."

Workers begin each morning by joining hands in a circle to greet one another and share daily plans aloud. Weekly lectures and art classes on company time prompted one employee to describe Sekem as "an entire way of thinking".

Sekem also boasts children's schools and adult vocational and literacy training, and combats child labor by educating and employing local children whose families need their income.

The schools and an on-site health clinic are open to the surrounding community.

Abouleish said investing in workers' well-being increases production.

Company sales -- at least 55 percent domestically -- are pegged at 80 million Egyptian pounds (13 million dollars) this year, up from 37 million (6 million dollars) in 2001.

International partners include Holland's Piramide, Denmark's Aarstiderne, Germany's Alnatura and Aveda in the U.S., while new ones are being pursued in the Gulf and Asia.

Lebensbaum began importing Sekem products in 1984 when few farmers anywhere grew organic spices, spokeswoman Claudia Rohrmann-Hansing said.

The German firm deals with African suppliers in Tanzania, Malawi and South Africa, but prefers Sekem not only for high quality but more variety of herbs and spices, including anise, peppermint and garlic, she said.

The Sekem megaplex has come far from its beginnings in the desert outside Belbes, 60 kilometers (40 miles) northeast of Cairo. It now boasts 2,000 employees on 4,000 acres (1,600 hectares), nearly half of which used to be sand.

It is the brainchild of Abouleish's father Ibrahim, who emigrated to Austria to study pharmacology but returned to Egypt in 1975 for a visit when, his son recalled, he was overwhelmed by problems he saw.

Two years later, the family uprooted from Austria to begin farming desert land. They now advise farmers from Egypt and abroad about organic growing methods at their research center.

Abouleish's vision of blending science and culture to guide everyday work makes Sekem stand out in Egypt, said Saad Eddin Ibrahim, a sociologist at the American University in Cairo.

"There are a few visionary projects like it but this is the most successful, the most integrated and the most self-sustaining in Egypt," he said.

Agriculture employs some 40 percent of the Egyptian workforce but remains the economy's least developed sector.

Organic enterprises account for barely two percent of Egyptian farms, according to Ghassan Hamdullah of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization in Cairo.

Many farmers cannot afford to grow organically because of a long transition, and yields of up to five times lower than chemically fertilized crops, he said.

But Abouleish said to increase Egypt's global agricultural competitiveness, the government, civil society and private companies should join hands.

"Nobody alone will survive in Egypt," he said.