In contrast…

European sales have increased 25% since the start of the global economic downturn

• In Germany organic arable farmers receive an average payment of £138 per hectare maintenance payment compared to the UK payment of £30 per hectare.

• German organic farmers also receive up to approximately £455 per annum to cover inspection and certification costs (as well as several extra per hectare payments – for cover crops, for example). 

Germany – CAP payments

Sweden

• Sweden has among the highest consumption of organic foods - 53% of Swedes buy organic food sometimes and 19% buy it as often as they can.

• The Government’s target that 25% of public procurement should be organic by 2010 was not met - in 2009 they reached 9.3%.

• Many Swedish cities are setting their own targets for organic: Malmö – 100% by 2020 and Södertälje - 50% by 2012.

• 14% of land farmland is currently organic – the Government target was 20% by 2010

• New targets for organic production are being developed by the Board of Agriculture and will be included in the Rural Development Program 2014-2020.

• ICA is the leading food retail company in Sweden - in 2011, sales of their organic line “I love Eco” products rose by 23%.

Lessons from the recession

• the UK is unique among all major national organic food markets in seeing sales fall since 2008

• also unique in having lowest levels of government support for organic farming in the EU, and

• unique in having 70% of organic sales through supermarkets

• those that came through the recession best were those that focussed with clarity and determination on organic quality– dumbing down did not work

• demand for significant growth in retail sales is there if organic products are available

• outside the multiple retailers, specialist retailers like Planet Organic have held sales steady, and sales of the national box schemes appear to be holding up (flat, but not dropping)

• growth in food services – the Food for Life Partnership is now working with 1,400 schools and the Food for Life Catering Mark covers schools (50% of London schools), hospitals, nurseries, care homes, community meals, workplace catering – now nearly 800,000 meals/day

• organic a very small part of the catering market (0.5%), but this market nearly equal in value to all food retailing; price of ingredients is less sensitive; environmental, animal welfare, climate and health issues are as important as in retail, so growing this market remains a Soil Association priority

Lessons from the recession and developing the food service market

Positive messages to consumers

• organic does all this and more but this is poorly recognised – because it is a complex message

• but this has not stopped growth in every other major organic market in the world

• in the UK we suffer from lack of government promotion, and lack of positive communication by most major brands and retailers

• for organic dairy farmers brands like Yeo, and OMSCO, have done a brilliant job