Half-year Report: Sweden and Denmark, World Leaders in Organic Food

After the first six months of the year, the market share of organic food increased to 9% (sales value). Thus, consumption of organic food in Sweden is as great as in Denmark, where they have been the world's best at buying organic food for a long time.

After the first of 2016, the market share for organic products in Sweden* in the retail sector and in Systembolaget (the Swedish Alcohol Retailing Monopoly) reached 9% (sales value). This is as great a market share as in Denmark according to the half-year report by the consulting company Ekoweb** carried out for KRAV.

“We are now celebrating a joint first place with Denmark and hope that our market share of organic products increases so that by the end of the year we are the best in the world at buying organic,” says Johanna Sandahl, Chairperson of the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation. The association has worked for a long time to get Swedes to eat more organic food with the goal of beating the Danes, thereby being the best in the world at buying organic products.

The half-year report also shows that sales of organic and KRAV-labelled foods increased by 23% compared to the same period in 2015 in the retail sector and Systembolaget.

• ICA: +15% (sales value)
• Coop: +13.5% (sales value)
• Axfood: +33% (sales value)
• Bergendahls: +38% (sales value)
• Lidl: +10% (sales value)
• Systembolaget +42% (volume)

“We see that consumers are driving the transition to organic food on shop shelves and that is the best signal that farmers in Sweden can get. Now we are chasing the title of “best at growing organic food”, currently held by Austria,” says Johan Cejie, Sales Manager at KRAV.

Despite production increases, mainly by existing KRAV and organic farmers, there are still shortages in several sectors, for example beef, eggs, some dairy products, poultry, and fruit and vegetables. As well, in the half-year report several actors indicate that the great consumer interest in organic and KRAV-labelled food will continue.

“Whether at the end of the year it will be Sweden or Denmark that calls themselves the best in the world at buying organic food depends entirely on the continued sales of organic food. We are hoping for a good second half of the race,” says Cecilia Ryegård, Editor at Ekoweb, which plans to present the annual sales for 2016 on 26 January 2017.

* KRAV’s half-year report is an analysis of the market for organic food in Sweden during the first half of 2016. It covers the large retail sector chains and Systembolaget (the Swedish Alcohol Retailing Monopoly), but does not include sales of organic food in restaurants and food services.

** Ekoweb has for 18 years been a politically independent market analyst, expert at analysis and statistics from the Swedish and international organic food market.

Annual sales of organic and KRAV-labelled food:
2015: +39%
2014: +38%
2013: +13%
2012: +6%
2011: +11%
2010: +11%
2009: +18%

Contacts:
Cecilia Ryegård, Editor, Ekoweb, 0708-152599.
Johanna Sandahl, Chairperson, Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (SSNC), 070-3578023.
Johan Cejie, Sales Manager, KRAV, 070-665 93 76.
Kristin Karlsson, Press Manager, KRAV, 070-665 95 30.