Organic farming is an overall system of farm management and food production that contributes to the preservation of natural resources. In 2020, the world market for organic food and drink exceeded €120 billion. The EU ranks second in the world for consumption of organic food (37% share of the global market). EU organic retail sales almost doubled in 2020 compared to 2015, and the area under organic farming increased by 41% in the same period. During the COVID-19 pandemic, organic food sales grew substantially, this is understood to be due to consumers paying more attention to health issues, higher food consumption at home and/or the shortage in conventional food (Market Brief: Organic farming in the EU, 2023).

In Ireland, the area of agricultural land under organic farming practices has increased from 1.16% in 2012, to 1.66% in 2021. However, at 1.66%, the share of organic farming as a percentage of total utilised agricultural area still falls below the European Union average of 9.1%.

For more information of the statistics of organic farming in Ireland visit:

https://agridata.ec.europa.eu/extensions/DashboardIndicators/OrganicProduction.html

https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/document/download/df01a3c7-c0fb-48f1-8eca-ce452ea4b8c2_en?filename=agri-market-brief-20-organic-farming-eu_en.pdf