Government of Canada supports expanded market opportunities for the organic industry

OTTAWA, ON, March 1, 2022 /CNW/ - The agriculture and agri-food sector is a key driver of Canada's economy, with the organics industry being one of the fastest growing sectors in Canada. Today, the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, the Honourable  Marie-Claude Bibeau, announced funding of up to $770, 000 for the Canada Organic Trade Association (COTA) to support market development for organic products.  

The funding will help create domestic and international export opportunities and promote the "Canada Organic" brand. The project includes the development of market activities at major food shows in Germany and the United States with additional activities related to market accessibility and technical assessments. The investment, made under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership's AgriMarketing Program, will support the association in welcoming incoming missions, offering retailer training, creating market reports and developing a directory of organic producers and exporters.

With this investment, COTA has developed a 4-module retailer training program as well as a webinar training series on how to become 'Export Ready'. It continues to expand the training program in order to deliver sessions virtually as well as in-person to a wide stakeholder audience. In the first two years of the program COTA has trained over 600 participants from 300 companies with estimated related sales close to $1.7 million.

Today's announcement supports the continued growth of Canada's organics industry through increased access to domestic and international markets, export readiness and retailer training, and promotion of the industry to incoming missions.

Quotes

"Canada's organic industry is one of our fastest growing sectors. These producers provide healthy and nutritious food to consumers across the country and, increasingly, around the world. Supporting the market development for organic products will further contribute to the growth of a more competitive and sustainable Canadian agricultural sector."
- The Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food

"COTA and our members are very grateful for the continued support from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada as organic agriculture and trade assist the Federal government to meet their goals on climate change. Canada's organic landscape continues to shine on the world stage and grow at a pace that highlights the increased demand for climate-friendly products by consumers worldwide."
- Tia Loftsgard Executive Director , Canada Organic Trade Association

Quick Facts

• The Canada Organic Trade Association is a not-for-profit industry association representing the organic value chain in Canada.
• Globally, the organic sector shows a worth of $147.5 billion dollars in 2018, up from the $102 billion in 2016 and is expected to continue its burgeoning growth. The Canadian organic market is now the sixth largest organic market in the world valued at $8 billion, which is up from $5.4 billion in 2017.
• There were more than 7,500 organic operations in Canada in 2019, accounting for roughly 2% of total agricultural land.
• Last year, Canadian agri-food and seafood exports increased by 10.9%, reaching $82.2 billion -- over $7 billion ahead of our target of $75 billion, and four years ahead of schedule.

Associated links

AgriMarketing
Canadian Agricultural Partnership
Canadian Organic Trade Association

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SOURCE Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada