The Organic Industry is Booming – Great News for Organic Seaweed!

Drivers for Organic Food Growth
Figures from the Soil Association state that you can now buy organic products from over 8,000 outlets, including major retailers. Research carried out by the Soil Association, shows more and more people are questioning the origin of their foods, and have concerns around production and trusting ingredients. Clare McDermott, business development director for the Soil Association states there are three main drivers for organic food

• Innovative Products
• Health and Wellbeing
• Home Delivery

McDermott, comments on these drivers. “There is a huge variety of interesting products coming to market, from nut butters and milks, to seaweed… Shoppers are looking for new and interesting food trends and organic is well placed to deliver these.”

McDermott added, “The other major trend is health… consumers often see organic as a short cut to health, particularly with the nutritional research published by Newcastle University”. 82% of UK shoppers purchase at least one organic item per year, an increase on 76.5% in 2016. One organic sector that has grown substantially is organic baby food, which is a reflection on the perceived health of organic food.
“Home delivery is one of the fastest-growing channels for consumers to buy organic, with much growth in the UK being led by Ocado and box schemes”. Waitrose along with other supermarkets are offering a diverse range of organic produce. However, discounters like Aldi and Lidl have less organic products and their emphasis is on these. “Home delivery will only grow for organic as it offers a wider choice of products and more direct access to producer,” she predicts. organic seaweed
Organic Sales

A recent report in the Food Navigator, report that “UK organic food sales on track to hit record levels” with organic sales predicted to exceed £2.2bn by the end of 2017! And according to Kantar Worldpanel (market research company), the UK’s organic market has grown by 6.3% in a year from August 2016 to August 2017. Online outlet Ocado’s organic products had a 16.2% sales increase in the past twelve months, with London and areas in the South of England holding the largest growth levels. “Organic isn’t a badge. Consumers easily see through inauthenticity” commented Dan Rusga, marketing director of Yeo Valley, the UK’s biggest organic brand.
Investment in organic production in France is increasing in response to the growing demand for organic products. 6.5% of France’s agricultural land is operated under organic production systems. Agence Bio, a French industry body, noted “Nineteen new organic farms (were certified) every day for the first six months of 2017”. This is due to staggering figures like, 71% of organic products consumed in France are produced in France, and they need to meet demand.organic seaweed
Like the UK, French consumers believe that there are health benefits of organic products. They also believe that nutrients in organic products, due to the production systems are “better preserved”, also that organic production helps the environment.
Our Organic Seaweed
With the organic industry growing, and as Clare McDermott discussed, consumer’s want innovative ideas like organic seaweed – our organic seaweed couldn’t be a better ingredient!
We have a range of organic seaweed ingredients that are densely packed with nutrients. The seaweed is harvested from the pristine waters of the Outer Hebrides, using Patent Pending Processes. Seaweed & Co. and the factory are organically certified, allowing us to produce our high quality organic seaweed.
Furthermore, our customers are confident in the knowledge that with our online transparent traceability systems, including our unique DNA Authenticated SeaweedTM, they can trace their organic seaweed all the way back to the harvest site and individual harvesters.
To find out more about Seaweed & Co. and our organic seaweed, don’t hesitate to get in touch with Doctor Seaweed®.

by Seaweed & Co

The demand for organic produce across the world is increasing at an exciting rate! This is excellent news for our own organic seaweed. Here Doctor Seaweed® will explain why…