Data from France reveals that the French organic sector enjoyed strong growth last year. Organic organisation AgenceBio this week released the results of its 2012 Barometer which measured the health of the organic market in France.

The Barometer revealed that both consumption and production of organic products rose between 2011 and 2012. Furthermore, the amount of organic produce of French origin being consumed within the country also increased. Having risen from 62 percent self sufficiency (by value) in 2009, over 70 percent of organic produce currently consumed in France is produced in the country itself.  

The report also revealed that 64 percent of consumers buy organic produce, with 43 percent regularly doing so – a rise of 3 percent on 2011 figures.  Buyers questioned as part of the report stated that they opt for organic produce as they believe the farming method helps "preserve the environment, soil quality, water resources, and ensures products are more natural than those grown with synthetic chemicals."

AgenceBio suggested the results of its tenth Barometer report reveal a continuing trend, "which goes beyond food;" sales of organic non-food items also increased by 5 percent, with almost 1 in 2 French consumers purchasing organic goods other than food.  

The organic body revealed 71 percent of shoppers said they sought reassurance that a product is environmentally friendly when shopping, compared to 66 percent in 2011. The organisation suggested that "in challenging economic times, the French are adhering to fundamental values when buying food."

The increase in consumption of organic goods in France is in line with continued growth in the country's organic area. In October 2012, AgenceBio announced that the organic area in France had surpassed the one million hectare mark in the first six months of 2012. The organisation then said French organic production had grown by over 12 percent since 2010.

In the UK, sales and production of organic food have taken a hit since the onset of recession in 2008. The sector shrunk by 2.8 percent in Britain in 2011; this stands in contrast to much of the rest of the world, where the organic sector grew 8.8 per cent overall.

Riverford Organics founder Guy Watson said the contraction in the UK had effectively been orchestrated by supermarket policy. Speaking at the Oxford Real Farming Conference in January, he said that, in a country where supermarkets account for over 90 percent of groceries sales, the shift away from organic products by large retailers in 2008 meant falling sales became "self-fulfilling." He elaborated, "When the recession hit [supermarkets] took lots of organic food off the shelf and replaced it with bargain food, because that's what they thought consumers wanted."