Organic Ag Sector Posts New Records in U.S. Sales

The organic sector stayed on an upward trend last year, gaining new market share and setting new records as consumers across the country ate more organic products than ever before. That news comes from the 2017 Organic industry survey that was released during the OTA policy conference this week. Organic sales in the U.S. totaled $47 billion last year, $3.7 billion more than the previous year’s total. The total marked the first time the organic market broke through the $40 billion dollar mark in sales. Organic food sales also make up more than five percent of overall food sales in America, at 5.3 percent. That’s another high water mark for the organic industry. Organic sales increased by 8.4 percent from 2015. The sales growth rate was 8.8 percent higher in 2016, a number that easily surpassed the growth rate of .8 percent in non-organic foods. The $15.6 billion dollar fruits and vegetable market held onto its position as the largest of the organic food categories in 2016. Sales of organic meat and poultry products shot up by more than 17 percent in 2016 to $991 million, the category’s biggest yearly gain ever.