Lifestyle pollsters YouGov Siraj have just released their findings on the organic market in the United Arab Emirates, where 775 residents were interviewed between 24 November and 1 December, according to Business Intelligence Middle East.
According to the study, 38 per cent were completely aware of the concept of organic food, with 20 per cent admitting no awareness at all and the remaining 42 per cent claiming some awareness.
Regarding consumption, 1 per cent indicated using only organic food, while 33 per cent claimed they did not use organic food at all. 45 per cent of the respondents said that they used both organic and conventional food, while 21 per cent answered that they had previously used it but did not do so currently.
Several reasons were given by those not consuming organic food, with 61 per cent stating the elevated price, 45 per cent blaming availability, and 22 per cent saying that it was no better than conventional food.
Amir Bozorgzadeh, business development associate at YouGov Siraj, commented: 'Although these figures are not surprising at first glance, once we dig deeper into the respondents’ explanations, we clearly see that although most of them are aware of the term ‘Organic Food’ and its benefits, they do not prefer it to conventional food.
'The main obstacle is the high price and unavailability of the products widely. Organic food stores have been available in the UAE for a while now, but we can clearly tell that it is not going to replace conventional food any time soon, although it is getting more popular with more stores being opened across the country.'
