Purchase of organic food increased by 7%

Consumers have started to buy organic more often: The purchase frequency of organic food increased with 7% in the past year, according to a new GfK study (2021). This seems to be partly due to the increased positive attitude towards organic: 61% of consumers who buy organic, think that organic products are made with more care. 95.6% of households bought organic in the past year, in 2019 this was 95.1% (GfK, 2021).

Two in five organic buyers (40%) say they buy more organic food now than a year ago, according to additional research on buying behaviour (Ruigrok, 2021). The main reasons for buying organic are the impact on nature (50%) and animals (44%). A large majority (61%) of consumers who buy organic find that organic products are made with more care. The majority of this group also finds the quality better (61%).

Consumers consider freshness, taste and price most important when buying food. For organic products, "good taste and animal friendliness" weigh the most.

Despite the fact that organic products are mainly bought in the supermarket (73.8%), a shift is visible. Organic products were more often bought outside the supermarket (26.2%), such as in a specialist shop or directly from the farmer, 5% more than last year. (GfK, 2021)

Merle Koomans van den Dries, director Odin: "Corona has really created a new group of customers that we did not see before. Our turnover has increased considerably in the past year. A structural change in behaviour takes more time and the long lockdown has contributed to this. Some of the new customers have also become members of our cooperative, so they were not just one-time visitors."

Bio Tasty for You

The study into purchasing behaviour and attitudes towards organic is part of the 'Organic tastes good for you' campaign, an initiative of the sector organisation Bionext. The campaign is financed with support from the European Union and aims to stimulate consumers to choose organic more often. More about the campaign can be found at www.biolekkervoorje.nl.

bionext.nl