The Norwegian Parliament has set the target that 15% of the country's food production and consumption should be organic in 2020. Sales of organic fruit and vegetables increased by 37 % last year; for their part, organic carrot sales grew by around 38 %.
The Norwegian market leader Bama has now sold more than 80 tonnes of organic carrots in a week; a new record. This growth is in line with the overall growth in organic consumption observed in recent years.
In recent years, demand has continued to increase, but at the same time, the acreage for organic production has been reduced. The result has therefore increased imports. The organic self-sufficiency rate has consequently fallen.
The Parliament noted that Debio and Oikos, the organisations supporting organic products in Norway, pointed out that the conditions have become very difficult for growers wishing to convert to organic farming.
The government's development funds for organic agriculture have been cut from 32 to 20 million dollars, which is leading many to doubt about the commitment from Liberals and Christian Democrats to reach the 15 % target.
For its part, the Labour Party is committed to introducing measures that encourage the conversion to organic production. This is a development that both consumers and manufacturers want.
According to Labour sources, if the country is to achieve the 15 % goal by 2020, the Government should follow up with concrete action.
Source: Aftenbladet.no