Aussie demand for organics outstrips local supply
- Written by Erin Roy
The anticipated Australian Organic Annual Report, released today, reveals Australia officially holds the largest amount of organic managed farmland in the world at 53%, however, this is still not enough to meet growing demand locally.
- Organic farmland in Australia has doubled since 2006 and increased by 23%, or, over 5 million hectares between 2015 and 2016, officially holding 53% of the world’s organic farmland
- Organic producers, processers and handlers have grown from 2,567 in 2014 to 3,751 in 2016 (up by 5%) with producers representing the largest group in Australia (2,075)
- Organic dairy is the most frequently purchased organic food, with half of shoppers surveyed purchasing organic dairy products at least once a month
- Organic eggs have shown the strongest growth in shopper purchase with 31% of shoppers purchasing in the past year (up 10% from 2014)
- Dairy, red meat and poultry also showed signs of growth up 6% from 2014
- Bakery items showed more than four-fold export growth between 2015 and 2016, with (a 480% increase in bakery items being exported since 2014, mostly to South Korea)
- The tonnes of organic products exported from Australia grew by 17% in 2016
- Australian shoppers are the sixteenth highest spenders per capita on organic packaged food at about AU$26 per capita with the US, Switzerland, Denmark and Sweden taking out the top four spots [1]
- A third of organic operations are in New South Wales, a quarter in Victoria and a fifth in Queensland
- The Northern Territory has the largest organic land area per certified producer
Paul Turner, Woolworths Merchandise Manager – Produce, said, “At Woolworths, we're listening to our customers and adapting our offer to ensure we are stocking a wide range of great quality items our customers want to see. In line with customer demand for organic produce we have expanded the range. Over the past year our Macro Organic volume has grown approximately 13% and organic sales growth by approximately 18%.
“Both Woolworths and our organic suppliers share similar values including a commitment to making organic products more affordable to the everyday customer, despite higher organic farming production costs.
The Australian Organic Annual Report tracks and reports on trends in the Australian organic marketplace based on research by the Australian Centre for Agriculture and Law at the University of New England and Mobium Group.
About Australian Organic Ltd. (AO) and Australian Certified Organic (ACO)
Australian Certified Organic is the largest organic certifying group in Australia and has played a major role in the organic industry since 1986, ensuring that organic standards in Australia are among the highest in the world. The Australian Certified Organic bud logo appears on over 14,000 organic products on our shelves and is the most recognised by consumers.
Australian Organic owns and supports Australian Certified Organic. It is Australia's member owned, not for profit, industry services group.
The Australian Organic Market Report is a highly respected annual publication commissioned by Australian Organic Ltd. that tracks trends in the Australian organic marketplace. This year’s Report incorporates independent research by University of New England, NASAA Organic, Horticulture Innovation Australia and Mobium Group.
[2] Mobium Group’s organic survey has tracked the attitudes of Australian consumers toward organic products in five public opinion polls in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2016. In the survey referenced in this report. In the latest survey, the primary grocery shopper in 1,024 households were polled over a week in June 2016. Roughly half of respondents were female and half were male, spread across all states, with a range of age groups and income profiles. About a third of those surveyed had children under 16 years living at home and 41% had attained or were attaining a university degree. For the statistically minded, the sample reliability at a total survey level was 95% (+/-3.1%), which shows a high degree of reliability.