Europe: number of farmers converting to organic is growing significantly

In Europe, there were almost 350,000 organic producers (European Union: 270,000), 60,000 organic processors and almost 3,700 organic importers. While growth in the number of organic producers was at 3 % (European Union: 5 %) and therefore comparably modest, the number of organic processors and importers increased by 12 % and 19 %, respectively.

These numbers of the year 2015 were presented at BioFach in Nuremberg from FiBL and can be found in the statistical yearbook "The World of Organic Agriculture".

Matthias Stolze of FiBL concludes: “The fact that the number of processors and importers grows faster than the number of producers is another indicator that organic production does not keep pace with demand. Countries should pursue a clear organic sector strategy, support shorter organic supply chains that provide environmental and social benefits, and set up improved statistical processes to increase the accuracy of organic market data collection.”