The world's organic food market is undoubtedly growing, as proven by figures and studies. Fruits and vegetables are the main organic foods which have see the largest growth in recent times.
Chile, the main supplier of fresh fruits from the southern hemisphere, is not lagging behind. According to data from ASOEX, organic Chilean fruit exports increased by more than 100%, reaching close to 6 million boxes during the 2017-2018 season. Chilean exports of organic blueberries, apples, and lemons, lead exports with 64%, 25% and 4% of the total organic fruit sent to the world, respectively. North America is the main market for conventional shipments, as well as for shipments of organic products. Therefore, it is an interesting market to get to know.
According to the latest study conducted by the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture FiBL and IFOAM - Organics International, North America (USA and Canada) continue to lead the organic food markets, with a market valued at 48.7 billion dollars in 2017. The United States is the largest organic food market in the world with a value of 45.2 billion dollars.
The organic food market in North America is characterized by mergers, acquisitions, and investments. Such activity has led to large operators, who operate at all levels of the supply chain.
Consumption: Fruits and vegetables in the "top"
According to the Organic Industry Survey 2018 of the OTA (Organic Trade Association), in 2017 American consumers purchased more organic products.
Sales of organic products in the US amounted to a record 49.4 billion dollars (43.7 billion euro) in 2017, i.e. 6.4 percent more than in the previous year, while reflecting new sales of almost 3.5 billion dollars. The organic food market amounted to 45.2 billion dollars (40 billion euro) in sales, 6.4 percent more.
Organic products continue to increase their penetration in the total food market in the United States, currently accounting for 5.5 percent of the food sold in the retail channels of the US.
Fruits and vegetables continue to be the largest category of organic foods, registering $ 16.5 billion in sales, a growth of 5.3 percent, and accounting for 14.1 percent of all fruit and vegetable sales in the United States.
The US organic agricultural sector continues to grow, as there were 6.5 million acres (approx. 2.6 million hectares) of certified organic land registered in August 2018 and 460 new operations during the year, according to Mercaris, a data service based in the US that is an online trading platform for organic agricultural products that are not genetically modified and are certified.
The organic market in Canada
The Canadian organic sector, just like the US organic sector, is on the rise. Canada currently has more than 4,800 certified organic producers and 1.27 million certified organic hectares (including wild collection).
Between 2011 and 2017, organic agricultural land in Canada increased by more than 45%, while total agricultural land remained stable with a 1% decrease. While the total number of farms has declined in Canada, organic producers are flourishing. There are more organic farms operating on more hectares than ever in Canada.
According to a report, there are 1,118 organic food processing companies in Canada. Organic processed foods and beverages sales amounted to an estimated 2.5 billion Canadian dollars (approximately 1.7 million euro) in 2017.
According to the FiBL and IFOAM report, most of the main processors of organic food in Canada are experiencing a year-on-year growth of more than 10 percent.
Source: SimFRUIT