Organic Market Report
Download and read our report on the Danish organic market.
Organic Denmark: Organic Market Report 2024
Sales of Organic Products
The retail market situation has been quite unique over the past three to four years. First came COVID-19, which led to large growth in grocery sales – including organic sales. This was followed by inflation, greater price focus and unprecedented restructuring in the retail sector. This has led to the first ever decrease in organic market share over the past two years. But the first analyses in 2024 and feedback from retail chains suggest that consumers are settling into a ‘new normal’ and are ready to buy even more organic products -again.
Organic Market Share
According to Statistics Denmark, the organic market share of retail trade in 2023 was 11.8% measured by value. Inflation and rising prices continued to impact consumers’ purchases of organic products. Measured by volume, there was a decrease of 3% compared to 2022. In general, consumer groceries purchases increased in 2023 according to Kauza, while organic purchases stagnated, resulting in a lower organic market share measured by value. In Q1 2024, the value of organic food retail sales increased at the same rate as total food sales for the first time in many months, according to Kauza. This is partly because consumers are now increasing the number of organic products in their shopping baskets, but they are also buying organic products more often.
Organic Export Market
We are pleased that exports of Danish organic produce rose in 2022, a year marked by the war in Ukraine and rising inflation, which caused stagnation in the organic domestic market. This confirms to us that Danish organic products have a strong position abroad.
It is important that we hold politicians to their EU goal that a quarter of agricultural land should be organic by 2030. There are many who have witnessed our success, and if we rest on our laurels, there is a risk others will fill the gaps in the market.
Organic Food Imports
As a natural consequence of the slowdown in the domestic organic retail market, there was also a slowdown in imports of organic food, which ended at DKK 5.2 billion in 2022. The minor growth compared to 2021 is due to rising commodity prices for grain and feed, as well as more imports of cheaper organic food as a result of Danish consumers’ greater price awareness in 2022.
