USA: Organic sales reach $ 26.6 bn in 2009

Sales of organic products in the USA continued to grow during 2009 despite the distressed state of the economy, the Organic Trade Association (OTA) revealed in releasing findings from its 2010 Organic Industry Survey. In fact, organic product sales in 2009 grew by 5.3 % overall, to reach 26.6 billion $. Of that figure, 24.8 billion $ represented organic food. The remaining 1.8 billion $ were sales of organic non-foods. “While total US food sales grew by only 1.6 % in 2009, organic food sales grew by 5.1 %. Meanwhile, organic non-food sales grew by 9.1 %, as opposed to total non-food sales which had a 1 % negative sales growth rate. These findings are indicative that even in tough times, consumers understand the benefits that organic products offer and will make other cuts before they give up products they value,” said Christine Bushway, OTA’s Executive Director. Experiencing the most growth, organic fruits and vegetables, which represent 38 % of total organic food sales, reached nearly 9.5 billion $ in sales in 2009, up 11.4 % from 2008 sales. Most notable, organic fruits and vegetables now represent 11.4 % of all US fruit and vegetable sales.

Since the approval of the final National Organic Program rule published in 2000, sales of organic fruits and vegetables have grown from 2.55 billion $, representing approximately 3 % of all fruit and vegetable sales, to the nearly 9.5 billion $ level and 11.4 % penetration level. Meanwhile, during that time, organic food sales have grown from 6.1 billion $ to 24.8 billion $ in 2009, jumping from 1.2 % of all U.S. food sales to 3.7 %. The mass market channel had the lion’s share of organic food sales in 2009, with 54 % of organic sold through mainstream grocers, club stores and retailers. Natural retailers were next, with 38 % of total organic food sales. Although still representing a small percentage of sales, farmers’ markets, co-ops and CSA (community-supported agriculture) operations gained a lot of interest as consumers increasingly look for locally and regionally produced organic foods. In the organic non-food sector, organic supplements led, with 634 million $ in sales, representing 35 % of total organic non-food sales. Organic supplement sales were 12 % higher than in 2008. Organic fiber (linen and clothing) totaled 521 million $ in sales, up 10.4 %, while personal care products, at 459 million $, were up 3.7 % from 2008 sales. The 70-page report is now available for purchase.

OTA