On May 10, the Organic Trade Association (OTA) released its 2023 Organic Industry Survey, which showed that organic food sales surpassed $60 billion for the first time. Total organic sales, including organic non-food products, reached a record $67.6 billion, the survey reported.
According to the association, the organic market grew despite several challenges: inflation, supply chain disruptions caused by the pandemic and global political events, a proliferation of competing food labels and the labor shortage. Inflation increased costs across the organic supply chain–and the entire food supply chain–and boosted prices in the grocery aisles. As a result, the organic sector reflected the overall food sector, with the value of organic sales rising even as the growth in the volume of sales for some categories decreased, according to the association.
The sector’s four-percent growth in sales value was nearly twice the pace of growth in 2021. Organic food sales totaled $61.7 billion, while the value of organic non-food sales hit nearly $6 billion. Certified Organic now accounts for 6 percent of total food sales in the United States, the association stated.
“Organic has proven it can withstand short-term economic storms. Despite the fluctuation of any given moment, Americans are still investing in their personal health, and, with increasing interest, in the environment; organic is the answer,” said OTA CEO Tom Chapman. “Organic’s fundamental values remain strong, and consumers have demonstrated they will come back time and again because the organic system is verified, and better for people, the planet, and the economy.”
Organic produce, often the entry point for new organic buyers, held its position as the top seller of all organic categories. Sales of organic produce totaled $22 billion, accounting for 15 percent of all fruit and vegetable sales in the U.S., the survey found.
Organic beverages were the second best-selling organic category, reporting $9 billion in sales in 2022, up 4 percent. Organic coffee maintained its position as the biggest-selling organic beverage, up almost 7 percent from the year before, with close to $2.3 billion in sales. Organic soft drinks and enhanced drinks broke through $500 million in sales at $503 million and saw growth of almost 14 percent, according to the survey.
In the organic non-food category, sales of organic linens and clothing accounted for roughly 40 percent of sales, recording $2.4 billion in sales for a gain of 2.5 percent. Organic supplement sales held steady with sales of around $2 billion, while organic personal care products rose over 5 percent to $1.2 billion.
In the last 10 years, organic sales have more than doubled, as Americans are eating and using more organic products than ever before. Total organic sales broke through the $50 billion mark for the first time in 2018, and organic food sales hit $50 billion for the first time a few years ago in 2019.
This year’s survey was conducted from Jan. 13 through April 4 and was produced on behalf of OTA by Nutrition Business Journal (NBJ). Inputs include but are not limited to point-of-sale data, expert interviews, annual report data, and in-depth direct survey data. About 100 companies completed a significant portion of the in-depth survey, according to the association.
For more information, visit www.ota.com.
This content was originally published here.
