Scotland’s farm, food producers and shops are encouraging shoppers to experience organic food and eat it as it should be.
This month sees the return of Organic September, an initiative by the Soil Association to encourage the whole nation to try organic.
Throughout the month shops, farms and producers are inviting everyone to join them and experience what it means to be organic and why organic is food as it should be.
New sales figures announced by Soil Association on the eve of Organic September show that Scots are voting with their wallets, as the organic market continues its seventh consecutive year of growth.
Consumer research undertaken by the Soil Association found several key factors have bolstered continued growth in the organic market. This is supported by the latest Nielsen Scantrack data sales figures that show an overall sales growth of 4% for the 52 weeks to 30 June 2018.
The research found that ‘healthiness’ and ‘taste and inspiration’ are increasingly important to consumers. Dramatic growth in sales include:
Organic delicatessen, including many chilled vegetarian products, up 27.8% year on year, while organic beer, wine and spirits (BWS) are up 8.7%.
Organic canned and packaged goods up 6.6%, with organic meat, fish and poultry sales also rising with an increase of 5.6% spurred on by barbeques and the hot summer weather.
Overall, sales of organic produce (+5.3%) and organic dairy (+3.5%) continue to grow ahead of the non-organic market.
These figures build on the Organic Market Report of December 2017, which showed sales of organic in Scotland grew at a rate of 19.4% last year.
Scotland-based Soil Association licensees reported even bigger growth at 28%, with 100% of Scottish independent retailers expecting organic sales to maintain or increase in 2018.
Scotland has so much organic fruit
Organic September sees some of Scotland’s most popular everyday fruits and vegetables coming into season such as apples, blackberries, pears and plums while vegetables include beetroots, carrots, field mushrooms, kale, leeks, lettuce, potatoes, pumpkin and squashes, sweetcorn, tomatoes and watercress.
However, it is not only fruit and vegetables that are organic, it’s the full shopping basket. This year alone, over 1000 new products were certified by Soil Association Certification including Adobe Malbec reserve 2017, Asda British cheddar, Clipper Fair Trade decaffeinated tea, Booja Booja Honeycomb caramel truffles, Jelley’s elderflower vodka and The Authentic Bread Company’s mini Earl Grey hot cross buns.
Having a Soil Association accreditation means whenever you see the organic symbol on a product you can be sure what you buy has been produced to the very highest standards. It means fewer pesticides, no artificial additives or preservatives, the highest standards of animal welfare and no GM ingredients.
Organic has a fully traceable supply chain right back to the farm. It’s inspected at every stage of the process meaning you really can know what’s in your food and how it has been produced.
Isla McCulloch, business development manager at Soil Association Scotland, said: ‘Organic September is a great opportunity to get to know some of Scotland’s incredible organic farmers and food and drink producers. From veg and meat boxes delivered straight to your door and a greater variety of organic available in supermarkets than ever before, it has never been easier to choose organic this September.
‘Small changes can make a huge difference and simple swaps in your shopping basket have a real knock-on effect. Increasing demand for more organic food means more organic farms. More organic farms mean more wildlife and more animals raised to the highest welfare standards.’
The Soil Association have produced a Starter Pack to help food lovers learn more about organic, featuring lots of great discount offers from organic brands, hints and tips for going organic, recipes, an events calendar, competitions and more.
Visit www.soilassociation.org/organicseptember for details.
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