Western Producer reporter Karen Morrison covered the International
Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements world congress in Victoria
Aug. 21-24.
VICTORIA – Organic products should not be sold on price but on their
difference, said Peter Segger, a British food buyer.
Consumers need to be educated on what distinguishes a certified organic
product from the rest, including how it is grown and how it benefits
human health.
“Simply slapping an organic tag on food doesn’t make it organic,”
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Segger told a seminar at the International Federation of Agricultural
Organic Agriculture Movements world congress in Victoria.
Segger said more funding is needed to pay for product sampling and
demonstrations in grocery stores.
Chuck Marcy of Horizon Organic in Longmont, Colorado, said brands must
be easy to like, speak to consumers in the language most easily
understood, and focus on benefits to the individual, not the organic
entrepreneur.
They must be positioned as something mainstream consumers would want to
incorporate into their lifestyles.
Marcy said large grocers are looking for unique features in product,
packaging and positioning.
“It’s very important to be different,” he said.
Citing the growth of organics in supermarkets, Segger said 65 percent
of the world’s consumers use them and most organic products are
purchased in grocery stores.
Supermarkets are important for organics because they respond to what
the consumer wants. The consumer is calling for organics, products free
of biotechnology and more locally produced foods, he said.
As important as providing markets, Segger said organic presence in such
stores also increases exposure and activates conversation about the
broader issues of agricultural sustainability and fair trade.
“Supermarket sales give organics a political power base,” said Segger,
who sees that as an opportunity to get more land into organic
production.
He cautioned organic producers to protect their consumers from
short-term exploitation and encouraged promoting long-term marketing
and business plans.
“Organic customers are worth their weight in gold over a lifetime with
their loyal choices,” said Segger.
Robert Beauchemin, president of La Table Filire Biologique du Québec,
said supermarkets cut into producers’ margins through slotting fees,
paid on the basis of where products are placed on the store shelf.
But he said they also give organics access to a greater number of
buyers while influencing the entire food industry.
“Products are available to mainstream consumers who would never enter a
health food store,” said Beauchemin.
He cautioned against making organics just another marketable commodity
in the short term. He suggested local and imported products in the
future might contain assessment ratings that show how much energy it
takes to produce and get food to market.
Dutch organic food distributor and importer Volkert Engelsman, managing
director of Eosta International, said stores in Europe have already
indicated they will stop accepting air-freighted food. Another store is
looking to find its food locally, he said.
He referred to a movement afoot in the European community to shift
subsidies from price support to support of biodiverse agricultural
systems.
He said more needs to be done to create stronger economic awareness of
the health benefits, ecological values and social benefits that come
with organics.
“The organic supply chain is in an excellent position, sitting on gold
really, to market and convert these benefits into premiums for serious
organic growers,” he said.
“It is very economic to be ecological,” said Engelsman.
