Fresh produce giant Produce World, the UK's largest grower of organic vegetables, is confident in the future of the organic category despite customers spending less due to the recession.
The company has pointed at its success with organic carrots, where sales have increased by 4.6 per cent in the last 12 months, as proof the category can continue to succeed.
"In the last year our organic carrots have increased in Sainsbury’s and Waitrose by 3.8 and 12.4 per cent respectively," said Andrew Burgess, director of agriculture at Produce World.
Produce World currently provide more than a third of all organic root vegetables to the UK market and Burgess is convinced that the majority of UK shoppers still buy organic vegetables for the right reasons.
"We conducted research with the Organic Trade Board and 57 per cent of those surveyed said that they continue to eat organics because there is no GM ingredients or pesticides used in production; there is clear evidence that the demand for organics has withstood the initial impact of the recession and consumers have remained loyal," concluded Burgess.
