Organic food purchases in Italy are up by 21% in 2016 to date, with an estimated annual consumption of around €2.5 billion.
The growth in organic consumption, according to the Italian farmers association,Coldiretti, has been uninterrupted for over a decade, with 13 million Italians bringing organic food to the table at least once a week.
According to the Italian Information System on Organic Agriculture (Sinab), organic production reached a record level of 1.5 million hectares in 2015 (+8% y/y), accounting for 12% of the utilized agricultural area. Over 100,000 hectares of countryside have switched to organic cultivation in just one year.
Organic e-commerce is also registering a positive trend, growing by 71% in just the last five years.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.