UK sees spike in organic food sales with pandemic
Published: October 6, 2020
Category: COVID-19 Pandemic Impacts, The Organic & Non-GMO Report Newsletter
Organic foods and drinks went flying off the shelves these last months in the United Kingdom, peaking during the ten weeks of lockdown ending in May 2020. Organic bananas, eggs, chicken, and wine led the sales charge as organic sales doubled for the year ending 2020, by 6.1%.
During the lockdown weeks, an 18.7% increase in sales exceeded a 14.2% growth for non-organic equivalent products. Overall, supermarkets experienced the highest sales growth rate since December 2016.
“Organic farming is a whole system approach that nurtures the soil, biodiversity and our planet,” said Louisa Pharoah of the Soil Association. “The Covid-19 pandemic has meant more people appreciate where food comes from, and with the increased interest in growing veg in our gardens and home baking, there’s never been a better time to talk to people about the benefits of organic farming.”
Tesco, the UK’s largest market, sold an average of 261,000 bananas each day and over 48 million individual organic eggs over the last six months, as customers became more health conscious. Co-op convenience retailer Waitrose saw a 13% increase in organic sales compared to last year, with chicken up 42% and vegetables up 23%.
Source: The Guardian
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