Global Boom in Organic Farming

Despite the impressive increase in organic farming areas, particularly in Europe, where over 10 percent of agricultural land is managed organically, the European market for organic food is facing a paradoxical trend: while the cultivation area grows, the market share for organic food is stagnating or declining.

The global organic farming area experienced historic growth in 2022, reflecting the increasing importance of sustainable agricultural practices worldwide. With an expansion of over 20 million hectares, the area under organic farming now totals 96 million hectares. Equally impressive is the rise in the number of organic farms, which now exceeds 4.5 million. These developments are also reflected in sales figures: the organic food market recorded nearly 135 billion euros in 2022 — a sign of the growing demand for sustainably produced food.

Upswing in Global Organic Farming

The data, collected from 188 countries and presented in the 25th edition of the statistical yearbook «The World of Organic Agriculture» by the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL) and the international organic association IFOAM, underline the sector's growth. Particularly noteworthy are Australia and India, each recording significant increases. Australia remains the nation with the largest organic farming area at 53 million hectares, followed by India with 4.7 million hectares.

The organic farming area has increased on all continents, with more than half of the organic area located in Oceania. Organic farming in the European Union has also reached a significant milestone, with more than 10 percent of agricultural land being organically farmed in 2022. Overall, the organically farmed area in the EU expanded by 5.1 percent to 16.9 million hectares, accounting for 10.4 percent of the total agricultural land.

France, Spain, Italy and Germany lead the EU in terms of the largest areas under organic farming. Greece and Italy in particular recorded the largest increases in organically farmed area compared to the previous year.

"The World of Organic Agriculture"

The 25th anniversary of the statistical yearbook "The World of Organic Agriculture" marks a significant milestone for the industry and serves as a valuable resource for stakeholders in the organic sector. The latest publication was presented at BIOFACH, the world's leading trade fair for organic food in Nuremberg.

Europe's pioneering role

These increases contribute to the EU continuing to play a leading role in global organic farming. The data also shows that the share of organic farming in Europe accounts for 3.7 percent of total agricultural land, with outstanding examples such as Liechtenstein and Austria, which have the highest organic shares worldwide and in the EU respectively. In total, 15 European countries reported that at least 10 percent of their agricultural land was organically farmed, underscoring the growing acceptance and transition to organic practices in Europe.

The increase in organic farming operations worldwide by almost 26 percent, driven in particular by strong growth in India, demonstrates the global momentum of the sector.

Mixed trends in the organic food market

The number of organic farming operations in the EU has also increased significantly, rising by almost 10 percent to over 419,000 operations. Italy leads with the highest number of operations, followed by a large number of processing companies and importers that strengthen the infrastructure for the organic sector in Europe.

While the trend toward conversion to organic farming remains unbroken, retail sales of organic food experienced a slight decline in the EU, among other markets.

The United States leads the organic market with revenues of 56.6 billion euros, followed by Germany and China. Canada and the USA are recording rising retail sales of organic food – however, a decline or stagnation is being observed in some European countries. In terms of organic product retail sales, Europe as a whole reached 53.1 billion euros, with Germany representing the largest market. And despite a slight decline in the EU and Europe overall, countries such as Estonia and the Netherlands showed positive growth rates, reflecting the differing dynamics in various parts of Europe.

Per capita spending on organic food has also doubled in Europe over the last decade, with Switzerland and Denmark leading in expenditure. Denmark also retains the highest organic market share in the world, followed by Austria and Switzerland, underscoring the strong preference of many European consumers for organic food.

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