Organic blueberry production in Guizhou Province is set to expand, as plants reach fruit-bearing age in 2022.  Chinese consumers look for sweet fruit and are increasingly interested in healthy fruit, such as organic blueberries. Weather conditions led to a 10 percent decline in blueberry production in Guizhou in 2019.

To foster export of textiles and cosmetics, India’s government plans to expand organic certification to cover those products, announced the chair of the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) at a recent trade fair.

As part of redesigning the product range, Aldi Sud stores offer red onions in only the organic version, joining carrots and pumpkins which are only available as organic in the stores. Organic products account for 7.7 percent of food sales in the stores, and Aldi Süd offer about 330 organic products. 

Nov. 1, 2019

Retail trends in China include increased night-time commerce, new shopping behaviors from younger consumers, and increased influence of “community consumers” according to a reasearch sharing session at the China Retail 2019 event in Shanghai.

The market for organic food and beverages is expected to grow 9 percent annually, but is slowing from 10 percent average annual growth from 2013-2018. Consistent ingredient supply is a challenge, as is distrust of organic products from large corporations.

Japan has agreed to increase market access for US agricultural products by eliminating or reducing tariffs or allowing a certain quantity of imports at a low duty. Japan’s treatment of US products covered in the agreement will match the tariffs that Japan provides preferentially to countries in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) agreement. Once the US-Japan agreement is implemented, over 90 percent of US food and agricultural products imported into Japan will either be duty free or receive preferential tariff access. In addition, the United States and Japan have reached a separate agreement on a high-standard and comprehensive set of provisions addressing priority areas of digital trade.

Although Taiwan is one of the largest markets for organic food in the region, with $27.6 million of imported organic food and beverages in 2018, the import market is expected to slow in coming years due to a stringent policy of zero tolerance for pesticide residues on organic products and time-consuming import applications. In addition, regulations that went into effect May 30, 2019 require equivalency agreements for organic products, or certification to Taiwanese standards. 

Imported organic product make up about 30 percent of the market in China, with 70 percent provided domestically. Large supermarket chains are targeting middle to high-end shoppers. Online sales are giving vegetable purveyors like Hiu Fung (Shenzhen) Company Ltd. a boost.

The Bulgarian Ministry of  Agriculture, Food and Forests has initiated a new register for producers, processors, traders, importers and storage facility owners involved in the country’s organic foods market.