To judge by some usually reliable metrics, organic markets around the world are currently in robust good health. Organic sales are growing strongly worldwide, market penetration is rising, M&A activity and investment remains high, retailer engagement is deepening and consumer awareness is increasing.
Set against a backdrop of a global epidemic of lifestyle diseases, and an urgent need for practical climate change mitigation, organic’s longer term outlook look promising too.
But we shouldn’t take anything for granted. The global organic food and farming Industry faces some formidable challenges – from undersupply issues to a growing international fraud problem; on-going regulatory hurdles to charges of elitism. And as organic moves into the next phase of its development – organic version 3.0 as it’s being labelled – there are calls from some quarters for a realignment of organic values, and move away from the current market dominated model. And with that, comes the question ‘what kind of organic industry do we want in future?’.
In my talk at next month’s Nordic Organic Food Fair, I’ll compress the key milestones of the last 12 months into a fast-paced round-up of global organic trends. On the way, I’ll check in on the latest market data, the biggest commercial deals of the year, key product and consumer trends and the ever-changing regulatory environment. And I’ll report on the industry’s ‘new disruptors’, who want to shape their own vision for organic – and show how they are already changing the discussion.
What: Global trends in organic: Data, deals and disruptors
Who: Jim Manson, editor in chief, Natural Products Global
Where: Nordic Organic Food Fair, MalmöMässan, Malmö, Sweden
When: 15 November 2018, 12.00-12.45