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Canadian Organic Marketplace Research Program
The Canada Organic Trade Association is pleased to announce that the first phase of our comprehensive study of the Canadian organic marketplace is complete. This is the first data on the organic market since the Canadian government regulated the sector in 2009 and combines consumer research with the most recent market sales data. The findings offer valuable insights into market size, growth trends and Canadian consumer receptivity.
Please visit the COTA Statistics Project Page for further information.
Top Findings
Canada's organic market grew to $3.7 billion in 2012, with national sales of certified organic food and non-alcoholic beverages reaching $3 billion. The value of the Canadian organic food market has tripled since 2006, far outpacing the growth rate of other agri-food sectors. The sector is being driven by a diverse consumer base, with over half of all Canadians and two-thirds of British Columbians buying organic products every week.
-Read the Press Release
-Download Canada's Organic Market: National Highlights, 2013 (pdf)
-Download the detailed BC report, The BC Organic Market: Growth, Trends and Opportunities, 2013 (pdf)
-The detailed National Report will be available September 2013
A special thank you to the funders who supported this research: Loblaw Companies, Taste of Nature, UNFI Canada, Whole Foods Market and the Organic Sector Development Program (OSDP). Funding for the OSDP comes from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's Canadian Agricultural Adaptation Program (CAAP), which is delivered by the Investment Agriculture Foundation in British Columbia
Canada-Swiss Organic Equivalency Arrangement
In late December of 2012, Canada and Switzerland successfully negotiated an organic equivalency arrangement. The agreement is similar to the EU-Canada deal and has some initial country-of-origin limitations in place, the Swiss will accept products from Canada of Canadian, Swiss or EU member-state origin, and Canada will accept from Switzerland products of Swiss, EU member-state or Canadian origin, including ingredients.
Organic Sector Responds
COTA, along with 30 other signatories, wrote to the National Post in response to a Nov. 24th article highlighting an untruthful report about organic prepared by the Frontier Centre. You can view the letter here.
Parliament Day 2012
COTA and Canadian Organic Growers (COG) hosted the third annual Parliament day on October 23 in Ottawa. The most important preeminent policy and strategy event of the Canadian organic sector, Parliament Day unites policymakers, business leaders and members of the organic community to celebrate and discuss the sector. The highlight of the event was the special all organic reception held at the house of Commons and hosted by Senator Carolyn Stewart Olsen.
Investment in Organics
Canadian Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz announced two investments to enhance Canada's organic food industry's competitiveness in global and domestic markets. The announcement, made during Parliament Day hosted by COTA and the Canadian Organic Growers (COG), included $180,000 to COTA from the AgriMarketing Program to participate in international trade shows, develop promotional materials, and build a long-term international strategy for the organic sector, and $152,000 from the Canadian Agricultural Adaptation Program to the Organic Council of Ontario to enable producers to develop innovative tools and technologies to benefit the sector. To see the press release, click here.
Read more about our recent news and activities in Canada.
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Any Canada Organic Trade Association member or OTA member that does business in Canada may subscribe to the COTA e-mail list serve by writing tyoung@ota.com. If you are a member, click here for more information about OTA Canada's development and operations.
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