Source: Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINGPLACE, 5/24/17



While fresh produce has long been the star of the organic industry, the latest data from the Organic Trade Association show sales of organic meat and poultry shot up by more than 17 percent in 2016 to $991 million.

It was the category's biggest-ever yearly gain.

Though still a small fraction of the meat and poultry market, the association predicts category sales will cross the $1 billion mark in 2017.

“Growing awareness of organic's more encompassing benefits over natural, grass-fed or hormone-free meats and poultry is also spurring consumer interest in organic meat and poultry aisles,” according to the OTA news release about its survey results.
U.S. sales of all organic food items reached $43 billion in 2016, up 8.4 percent from the previous year. Organic food now accounts for about 5.3 percent of total food sales in the United States.  

OTA's 2017 Organic Industry Survey was conducted by Nutrition Business Journa from Feb. 2, 2017, through March 31, 2017. More than 200 companies responded to the survey.

Executive summaries of the survey are available upon request.

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