Summer 2022 - 19

SURVEY RESULTS
organic seed. Findings confirm that
organic producers lead the nation in
adoption of soil health management and
climate-friendly practices.
The OFRF and Organic Seed Alliance
(OSA) released the National Organic
Research Agenda (NORA) and State
of Organic Seed (SOS). The two
reports are published every five years
to examine organic farming challenges
across the U.S., identify research needs
and better understand the organic seed
needs of producers.
The organic food market experienced
incredible growth in 2020, with sales
surpassing $56 billion, a 12% increase
from 2019. The organic seed market
has also grown in recent years due to
this demand for organic food as well as
a dramatic rise in gardening during the
COVID-19 pandemic.
REPORTS IDENTIFY
CHALLENGES
The reports provided comprehensive
assessments and recommendations
for ensuring the ongoing growth
and success of organic farming in
the U.S. Specifically, NORA details
organic research needs with the goal
of informing future investments that
support the success of organic farmers
and ranchers and those transitioning to
organic production. SOS details trends
in organic seed sourcing, challenges
faced by organic seed producers, public
investments in organic plant breeding,
and more.
In 2019, OFRF and OSA were
jointly awarded funding from the
U.S. Department of Agriculture's
(USDA) National Institute of Food
and Agriculture's (NIFA) Organic
Research and Extension Initiative
(OREI) for the NORA and SOS
projects. The following year, OFRF
and OSA launched a national survey
of organic farmers and ranchers,
in addition to a survey targeting
transitioning-to-organic operations,
to better understand these producers'
challenges, needs, and perspectives.
More than 1,100 producers
responded to the survey and an
additional 100 producers attended 16
listening sessions across the country.
Overall, farmer participation reflected
the same demographics of those in the
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U.S. farming sector as documented
in the USDA's National Agricultural
Statistics Services 2019 Organic Survey.
BUYING PATTERNS STABILIZE
Following an unprecedented
year marked by pantry loading and
supply shortages, the Organic Trade
Association's (OTA) latest Organic
Industry Survey released in June
showed consumers returned to more
stable, buy-as-you-need shopping
patterns in 2021. Between 2020 and
2021, organic sales surpassed $63
billion, with $1.4 billion (2% total
growth over the year). Food sales,
which comprise over 90% of organic
sales, rose to $57.5 billion (roughly 2%
growth), and non-food sales reached $6
billion in sales (7% growth).
" Like every other industry, organic
has been through many twists and
turns over the last few years, but the
industry's resilience and creativity
has kept us going strong, " said new
OTA CEO and Executive Director
Tom Chapman. " In 2020, organic
significantly increased its market
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ORGANICGROWER.INFO 19
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Summer 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Summer 2022
