Global sales of organic products rose by 8.8 per cent in 2010 with growth continuing into 2011, according to the latest organic market analysis by the Soil Association. The only exception to this trend was in the UK where overall sales fell by 3.7% in 2011.
Strong growth was noted in all other major European organic markets and in the US, which is the world’s No. 1 organic market. Meanwhile, sales of organic products in China have quadrupled in the last five years while Brazil is recording an annual growth rate of 40 per cent. Market analysts predict that organic sales in Asia will grow by 20 per cent a year over the next three years. In the UK, reduction of offerings, limited communication about the reasons to buy organic products and a lack of investment in private label organic ranges are believed to be the key factors of this decline.
However, some areas of the organic market did enjoy growth: baby food (+6.6 per cent); lamb (+16 per cent); poultry (+5.8 per cent) and cosmetics (+8.7 per cent). (6 Mar)
© 2012 ESM: European Supermarket Magazine
