One grocery executive recently said, when explaining the lack of interest in the organic pasta sauces and cereals that prompted the store discontinue them, that "most of [the] consumers couldn't care less" about whether products were organic or not. The executive is part of a growing segment of retailers that believes that the push towards organic foods is not much more than a passing fad and, although it probably won't fade out in the way that the low-carb craze did, that it will return to a niche segment. Manufacturers, too, are cutting back on organics after discovering that consumers aren't always eager to pay double the price for a frozen pizza with organic flour when it is next to a regular one.
But the trend isn't fading everywhere. Upscale groceries, where consumers are already paying premium prices, are continuing to stock their shelves with organic options and consumers everywhere are still showing interest in buying organic meat, dairy and produce. Perhaps part of the problem is an overuse of the label. In unprocessed goods, such as produce and dairy, shoppers can see and taste the difference in organic products. In processed foods, most people only see the price difference and the word "organic" but only a few, if any, can taste the difference in the product.
So, organics might not be on the way out; they market is merely being refined as consumers become more educated about what organics are and more likely to overlook a potentially overpriced product that only has a small portion of organic ingredients in it.
Second Helping of Slashfood - June 19
Competitive-Eating Contest to Pit Humans Against Elephants
The Backyard Boom - The Hungry Bride
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-18-2006 @ 1:05PM
dlz said...
i'm not drinking the kool aid on this one. nearly 20 years ago the music labels said that a $20 pricetag on a CD was necessary because they were so costly to produce, promising that over time as the market converted away from vinyl the price would drop. today the market is entirely CD based and the price has remained the same and will stay that way for some time.
the reason: the costs of producing a CD are marginal and the profits tremndous.
does anyone really believe that the organic ingredients in processed foods cost twice as much as non-organic? no, and as long as those prices remain artificially high people won't buy. so the manufacturers look at their numbers and say "huh, must be a fad because the numbers aren't there" when in fact it's an educated marketplace that isn't going to give in to market inflation. yes, people will pay mopre for organic, but not double.
the market is, and always will be, out there. and no grocery executive's bottom-line thinking is going to change the consumer market.
the better solution in the end may be to require packages to contain warning labels for NON-organic ingredients right on the front. imagine: "this pasta contains chemical additives and non-nutritional preservatives that have not been thoroughly tested for long term effects and may cause unknown health risks."
Reply
10-18-2006 @ 1:14PM
ben said...
ha, a label like that on the front of non-organic products would be hilarious.
Reply
10-18-2006 @ 2:49PM
Dave said...
the artical that I linked to has a book that has a chapter on this very topic.
The writer(s) assertion is that the "organic" niche has the potential to create two levels of food eaters (the rich eating organics, the poor eating processed junk) in the North American market place (the focus of the book).
Reply
10-18-2006 @ 4:39PM
dlz said...
sarah -- yes, an over-simplifaction on my part but the market and production challenges ARE there in agribusiness and are the compelling reasons food processors on the whole aren't interested in converting and supporting organic farm culture. add to the cheap checmicals and technological solutions the fact that there's a lot of money being thrown around but very little of it in the direction of organic farming.
just out of curiosity, what are these other compelling reasons for not spending extra money on organics? i'd be curious to know what the trade-off is for my body's health and well-being. or do i just not get it.
Reply
10-18-2006 @ 5:15PM
peggy said...
Most of the grocery stores I shop at have greatly expanded their organic foods sections, and have plans to expand even further. And, many of our super markets offer specials on organic foods that price them close to their non-organic counterparts. In the grocery section of the store we shop at the most in northern CA (TOPS markets) the non-organic lettuce and organic are priced the same. In the dairy department, the organic cream is priced below the non-organic cream. Organic butter is only slightly higher than premium brand non-organic butter. In the pre-packaged food department the organic bottled pasta sauce, pasta, cereals, and many soups, are sometimes priced lower (when there are sales or specials) than the non-organic brands. I think that demand for organic foods is regional. We Californians (especially those of us who live in the north state) prefer our food fresh AND organic for the most part. Our markets respond accordingly. Organic may be a "fad" where some people live, but it's the way we eat here!
Reply
10-18-2006 @ 5:25PM
Hawk said...
I can't taste the difference between my chocolate crisp rice cereal by EnviroKids (that would be errhm, uh, something about koalas. koala crisp?) and Cocoa Crispies.
That's not a bad thing. The ingredient list on the EnviroKids cereal is about five items long, whereas the one for the CocoaCrispies contains about five times that many.
If they don't need chemicals to make the cereal taste good and not spoil (I don't even fold the top and it will get eaten before it goes remotely stale or moldy), then why do they put them in there?
Reply
10-18-2006 @ 6:20PM
Carol said...
We mainly shop at the Whole Foods, and I've actually found many organic products there at a lower price than non-organics at other supermarkets. I think when it becomes more the norm to purchase organics, the prices will go down and they'll be more available. Look at what happened to cel phones and laptops.
Reply
10-18-2006 @ 6:31PM
peggy said...
Oh, and to the person who used the CD analogy...I don't know where you buy your CDs, but I don't spend $20 for mine, unless it's a pretty special imported CD or contains multiple disks!!
And, since the price of CDs has not increased at all in 20 years (whereas food, whether it is organic or non-organic, has skyrocketed) then we are all pretty fortunate in terms of what our music is costing us, aren't we? You can't compare the two anyway -- VERY different, and shows you don't know much about what goes into producing organic foods (as others have already pointed out). It's not easy for organic farmers -- plus, the process to earn an organic designation stamp is brutal and can take more than 3 years.
Reply
10-19-2006 @ 1:30PM
Tracy said...
Why shop organically?
1. Because I don't what mine and my family's bodies to be a dump for all the chemicals and additives that are placed in non-organic food.
2. My money has value to me and the economy. I use my money in places that place value on their customers, employees, and suppliers i.e. farmers.
3. We can all take charge of this world and make it represent our values, or we can "buy into" the belief that big agribuisness will take care of us and our bodies with their wisdom.
4.Is it more important to have money to buy and prepare healthy food for my family, or have money for more CD's, electronics, clothes etc...I say food, and I make the sacrifice to be able to purchase organic and non-GMO food.
If more people thought this way, then prices would come down.
Reply
10-19-2006 @ 2:18PM
sarah said...
To DLZ - The market forces and production challenges in agriculture are actually very different than those driving the marketing and production of CDs. Your over-simplification of the issue demonstrates your misunderstanding of why organic products are more expensive than their non-organic counterparts. There are many compelling reasons not to spend extra money on organic products, but your reason isn't one of them. Organic farmers face unique challenges. Namely: the overabundance and acceptance of cheap chemical and technological solutions which fly in the face of an organic farmer's mission.
Reply
10-19-2006 @ 10:34PM
Live said...
I don't mind if the food is organic or not.
-------
http://hghlook.com
Reply