Demand for organic food in the UK is holding up despite the recession, industry watchers said today (17 March) and there are signs sales will grow in the future.
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Speaking at IFE in London’s Excel today (17 March), Jim Twine, commercial director of the Soil Association, said he did not believe the organic market is declining.
He acknowledged, however, that organic segment is unlikely to become a mainstream market in the UK.
“It is holding its own,” Twine said. “We need to do a better job of educating people on organics and that will be key. There is no way organic will become a mass market in the UK, it will always be a relatively small market.
Consultant for the food industry Kevin Hawkins said that more people are going to want to know the origin of the food they are buying.
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By GlobalData“Even at its peak [organic] sales were only 2% but this has grown over the last decade, driven by the Frankenstein food hysteria, which put a bit of life into it,” Hawkins said. “How long this will continue we don’t know but it will all depend on consumer income.”
Hawkins said that organic has, in particular, enjoyed a stronghold in the independent sector, which he believes, in time, will increase.
“We will see more and more sold through retailers and alternative routes to market and we will see more of an interest in the actual food, its source and its origin.
He added: “In five years time retail outlets will dominate organic food sales. The percentage might be slightly down but organic won’t go. More people want to know about where their food comes from.”
Despite this, Hawkins said the Food Standards Agency (FSA) maintains that there is no scientific evidence to suggest that organic food is safer or more nutritious. If in five years it is proven, Hawkins says we are likely to see an increase in sales, “but the chances are pretty remote”.
