The organic food industry in Canada is booming, and industry insiders say millennials are to thank for a good portion of that growth.
In town for the Guelph Organic Conference and Tradeshow, Ashley St. Hilaire of Ottawa-based Canadian Organic Growers said many people in the millennial age category tend to be more literate when it comes to their food choices.
St. Hilaire is the director of programs and government relations with Canadian Organic Growers.
“We know this whole foodie culture is really driving this attention to food and where it comes from, where it’s produced and what it stands for,” said St. Hilaire.
The organic marketplace in Canada experienced over $5.4 billion in sales in 2017, up from $4.7 billion two years earlier.
A millennial herself, St. Hilaire said the buying habits of that demographic are partly to thank for recent growth in the sector.
“Everything we have been taught in school is about long-term thinking, about sustainability and the environment and trying to do better than we did before,” she said.
Canada Organic Trade Association (COTA) conducts extensive market research on the organic food industry in Canada, which punches above its weight as the fifth-largest domestic market in the world.
Tia Loftsgard, executive director of COTA, said the organic food sector in Canada is well positioned for the future.
“Those millennials are driving the market higher and higher and we know demographically they are going to be the dominant market force moving forward,” said Loftsgard.
Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, announced Friday that the government of Canada is providing financial support toward updating the Canadian Organic Standards.
St. Hilaire said that standard is the backbone of the Canadian organic food industry.
“It is what gives integrity to the Canada Organic logo and our brand. It stands for environmental sustainability, animal welfare and social justice,” she said. “It’s also what makes us competitive on the world market. It’s what gives us world recognition.”
Work is progressing on updating the Canadian Organic Standards by the year 2020. It is updated every five years.
It takes about two years to do a full review of the standards, said St. Hilaire, with consultation of the entire organic food industry.
The government of Canada is greatly expanding its financial contribution to updating the standards, at a cost of about $250,000.
MacAulay said it is vitally important that the standards are up to date for organic foods grown in Canada to meet export requirements and for the confidence of the domestic market.
“When that certification sticker is put on the product — that if you buy it or somebody in Europe buys it — that it meets the world standards for organic,” said MacAulay.
MacAulay announced an additional $72,500 of funding will go to Canadian Organic Growers toward the creation of a new user-friendly guide to the Canadian Organic Standards.
COTA will receive an investment of $95,114 from the government of Canada toward their internal market development strategy.
In total, more than $400,000 will has been announced by the government to support the organic food sector.
“The government of Canada is covering the costs — rest assured,” said MacAulay.
St. Hilaire said the updating of the standards is good for the entire organic food industry — farmers, food producers and consumers.
“They want the word organic to mean something and they want everybody to be applying the standards in the same way and held to the same level of accountability,” she said.
St. Hilaire graduated from University of Guelph in 2011 and returns every year for the conference.
The conference, one of the biggest annual organic food events in Canada, is being held this weekend at University Centre.
“This event keeps getting bigger and bigger, and that reflects the growth of the industry, the capacity and the enthusiasm of what we are doing,” said St. Hilaire.
