Presently there is an opportunity to promote organic farming in the Central and Eastern European Countries (CEEC) that joined the EU in 2004. The development of organic farming has the potential to decrease the amount of nutrient leaching to the Baltic Sea and could help to stop the environmental degradation of the Sea. However, this requires a diverse set of institutions. This paper explores the institutions that are lacking to promote full development of organic farming in the CEEC. A case study approach, formalised by introducing a set of indicators, has been used to identify the missing institutions. Data has been obtained from a desktop study, including a literature review, interviews and a questionnaire. The case studies partially support previous studies proposing that the development of organic farming proceeds along six steps: development of an organic farming community; development of the political recognition; establishment of financial support; establishment of non-competitive relationships between the organic sector and general agricultural institutions; development of a domestic organic food market; and development of a discussion and coordination arena. The results show that market development is the least developed step.