Strong growth for organic

Organic food and drink sales now seem back in strong growth almost everywhere, even where they had slowed or fallen in recent years.

The latest US figures from the Organic Trade Association highlight the successes, but also point to some interesting contradictions.

• 6.4% growth in 2017 to a record $45.2 billion from 24,000 certified organic operations and now accounting for 5.5% of overall retail value.

• Fruit and vegetables the largest segment, up 5.3% to $16.5 billion.

• Dairy and egg in second place, up a much lower 0.9% to $6.5 billion, but organic dairy ice cream was up more than 9% and organic cheese up nearly 8%.

• Beverages in third place, up 10.5% to $5.9 billion, led by fresh juices up 25% to $1.2 billion in contrast to continuing declines for non-organic juices.