Organic Produce Network and Category Partners Report Organic Produce Sales Growth; Tom Barnes Shares
MONTEREY, CA - Movement in the organic sector throughout 2022 led to some shifts in dollar and volume growth, as reported in the 2022 Organic Produce Performance Report from the Organic Produce Network and Category Partners. According to the report, total sales topped $9.4 billion for the year, with dollar sales growing by 3 percent and volume declining by 3.7 percent.
“In an inflationary time like this, we expect to see the growth of sales dollars and volume declines repeated for the majority of organic and conventional fresh produce items,” said Tom Barnes, President of Category Partners. “The average conventional price per pound grew by 9.2 percent compared to 2021 while organic produce price per pound rose by 7 percent. With rising prices, we may see more selective organic shopping from consumers as they substitute higher-priced organic items for conventional ones.”
The organic fresh berry category was the top organic produce category, holding more than 16 percent of organic fresh produce dollars in 2022. Overall fresh berry sales topped 1.6 billion for the year, with organic packaged salads a close second at $1.55 billion, a press release outlined. Organic fresh produce made up 12 percent of all fresh produce sales and accounted for 7 percent of all volume.
Organic apples were the largest example of conventional substitution, as their price per pound increased by more than double the amount of conventional, resulting in a volume decline of 10.3 percent. Overall, 13 of the top 20 organic produce categories (by total sales) posted increases in dollars.
Additionally, 14 of the top 20 organic produce sales categories posted declines in volume, with only 10 of those categories showing positive dollar growth, with organic bananas being the biggest volume mover. Potatoes and cabbage, typically regarded as inflation busters, showed a 10 percent increase in dollar sales and a nominal 1 percent growth in volume.
Organic performance in 2022 was consistent among all regions of the nation—dollars grew and volume declined. The Northeast saw the lowest dollar growth and highest volume decline, while the South continues to show the most year-over-year improvement, the release stated.
For more from the report, click here.
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