An expansion of organic agriculture in Spain generated 30,000 new jobs between 2013-2018 and continues to create new jobs at a rate of 500 a week.
The striking figures were revealed by Javier Maté, general deputy director of Spain’s Ministry of Agriculture, in comments given to journalists ahead of last month’s inaugural Organic Food Iberia event in Madrid.
Maté sees expansion of Spain’s organic sector as an investment in the future that will deliver “important economic value and opportunities for numerous families across many regions”.
Maté praised the new trade event, commenting that it created the opportunity “to unite producers, suppliers and distributors in one place”, adding that such a showcase would help to further enhance the organic industry’s prospects, which continues to deliver double digit growth in Spain.
Speaking at the event itself, Fernando Miranda, secretary general of the Ministry of Agriculture, commented on the growing domestic market for organics in Spain, helped by the increasing availability of organic in mainstream retail. In fact, he said, organic sales in the conventional retail channel had this year exceeded that of the specialist channel for there first time.
Miranda emphasized organic’s strategic role as part of Spain’s agricultural mix, commenting that it delivered on the triple pillars of “quality, added value and environmental sustainability”.
Spain’s organic market is currently worth around EUR2.2 billion, up 10% on 2018. Around 475,000 Spanish citizens consume organic every week.
Main photo: Fernando Miranda (right) was among senior ministerial figures who attended last month’s Organic Food Iberia event.