Demand for organic cocoa is on the rise but market analysts are predicting supply shortages unless more cocoa producers switch to organic farming – but where’s the incentive to do so when this means reduced yields, higher costs and huge debt?
The industry needs to think how farmers can be incentivized to grow organic cocoa because premiums do not currently compensate the productivity shortfalls from not using pesticides and fertilizer, according to Tradin Organic’s cocoa director.
The UK organic food sector remained flat in 2012, but branded goods enjoyed a sales boost as supermarkets shrank their organic private label portfolios, according to the Soil Association.
The UK’s organic sector is waking up to the need to market its key messages and is planning a conference to examine consumer attitudes and share experiences.
The European Commission has launched a campaign to inform consumers of the benefits of organic food and support those involved in the ever-growing organic market.
UK sales of organic food have risen by 30 per cent this year to
almost £1.6bn (€2.3bn) according to a new report from the Soil
Association - and bakery manufacturers are catching the trend.
There are worries that a district court ruling in Maine banning all
synthetic ingredients in products labeled organic could
significantly slow the sector's growth, writes Anthony
Fletcher.
A new deal between organic food retailers and farmers may help to
bridge the gulf between low organic food consumption and rising
levels of organic farming in the Czech Republic and Poland,
writes Chris Mercer.
Czech shoppers are refusing to pay inflated prices for organic food
- something which may burst the bubble of the country's booming
organic farming industry, unless a sharp increase in government
subsidies can turn the situation...
The International Sweets and Biscuits Fair (ISM) held last month in
Cologne, Germany, clearly illustrated how kids and adults are
targeted by confectionery groups.