To an audience of over 80 guests representing organisations across the organic sector Martin Sawyer, CEO of Soil Association Certification, presented the key findings and trends of the report and the current state of the organic market.

Now in its fifth year, the presentation unveiled that total sales of organic products increased by 7.1% in 2016 and has smashed broken the £2 billion marker for the first time.

We’ve helped farmers to finance 1,185 hectares of additional organic land in 2016, a threefold increase on last year.
Simon Crichton, Food, Farming & Trade Team Manager

Simon Crichton, Food Farming & Trade Team Manager at Triodos Bank spoke about the opportunities and financial outlook for the organic market.

In the UK, Triodos Bank lends to more than 330 organic food and farming businesses and around 1,500 across Europe. We finance farms producing the equivalent of 33.6 million organic meals per year and focus on supporting farmers who demonstrate the benefits of sustainable and organic agricultural principles.

Simon said: “We’ve helped farmers to finance 1,185 hectares of additional organic land in 2016, a threefold increase on last year. We’ve seen dairy doing well as are those who have direct relationships with consumers, whose confidence in organic has increased.”

Finally, founder of Bristol’s Better Food Company, Phil Haughton, shared his experiences, successes and outlook for organic as an opportunity for future growth in the South West region.

Organic means higher levels of animal welfare, less levels of pesticides, no manufactured herbicides or artificial fertilisers and more environmentally sustainable management of the land and natural environment – which means more wildlife.

To find out how you can attend our next networking breakfast event, head to our events page.

You can also nominate an organic farmer, food blogger or rising star for the Soil Association #BOOMAwards here.