The consumption of organic products is increasing in Belgium but not by all. They are especially popular among well-off individuals and families according to a report on organic farming published by the Flemish administration.
Belgians spent last year 514 million euros on buying organic products (including non-food products), a significant increase by 18% compared to 2014 according to calculations by GfK, a market research company. This is the biggest increase in one year: the increase was only 4% between 2013 and 2014.
The percentage of Belgian households affected by the organic market remains stable at 88%. The increase in spending can be explained by more shopping. However, only 9% of households buy organic products weekly.
Brussels is by far the region with the biggest increase with 47% compared to 11% in Flanders and 18% in Wallonia.
In absolute figures, wealthy families with children and retired people are the biggest consumers. While only representing 39 % of the total population, these two groups account for half of all expenditure on organic food products.
Singles above the age of 40 spend the largest part of their expenses on organic food (4%), in contrast to low-income families with children (1%). Supermarkets are still the main distribution channels (42%) but are losing ground to specialized shops (33%).
On average, organic food products are more expensive than their conventional equivalents by one third. Despite their growing success, their market share is still less than 3 %.
The Brussels Times (Source: Belga)
