Retail sales of organic products in Hungary increased by 13.9% – our country is the second fastest growing market in the European Union

The turnover of organic food increased by 3.5% worldwide and by 4.1% in Europe from 2023 to 2024. These products are also increasingly popular in our country: according to the yearbook, Hungary ranked second in the European Union in terms of retail turnover with a growth of 13.9%, right after Luxembourg (20.2%).

At the world’s leading organic food trade fair, BIOFACH, around 2,200 companies from nearly 90 countries presented their product offerings. In addition to Germany, most exhibitors came from Italy, the Netherlands, Austria and Spain, but of course Hungary was also among the exhibition stands. Among the international players, India was able to attract attention this year with the title of Country of the Year 2026, as an increasingly rapidly strengthening region in the organic farming palette.

The international trade fair shows year after year how diverse, modern and international the world of organic products is, and the parallel congress is the venue for international experience sharing, dialogue and joint thinking. Ideas are born here that serve sustainable nutrition and give impetus to the future-proof food sector.

Global organic market hits record high in 2024, area stable at 99 million hectares

Conscious consumers are spending more on organic food and drinks, sending a clear signal to producers, processors and retailers that demand for healthy organic products produced in an environmentally friendly, chemical-free manner is growing. Global retail sales of organic food and drinks are expected to reach €145 billion in 2024 (an annual increase of €6.9 billion).

In 2024, the United States remained the largest single organic market (€60.4 billion), followed by the European Union (€49.5 billion), Germany (€17 billion) and China (€15.5 billion).

Switzerland had the highest per capita organic consumption worldwide, at €481/person, and also had the largest market share of organic food: organic products accounted for 12.3% of total food sales in 2024. This overtook Denmark, which had previously held the top spot (11.6%). Australia had the largest organic agricultural area (53.0 million hectares), while Liechtenstein had the highest share of organic areas (43.5%) of total agricultural area.

On the production side, the area under organic farming remained broadly stable at 98.9 million hectares, while the number of organic farmers worldwide reached 4.8 million.

In Europe, retail sales of organic food increased to €58.7 billion, reflecting renewed consumer confidence in the main European markets. Germany remained the largest organic market in Europe (€17.0 billion), followed by France (€12.2 billion) and Italy (€5.2 billion). Total organic retail sales in Europe reached €58.7 billion (of which €49.5 billion in the EU), representing a 4.1% increase in Europe and a 3.6% increase in the European Union.
The area under organic farming in Europe remained at 19.6 million hectares (EU: 18.1 million hectares), representing a 3.9% share in Europe and 11.1% in the European Union.

The European countries with the largest organic farming areas were Spain (2.9 million hectares), France (2.7 million hectares) and Italy (2.5 million hectares).

Record expansion in domestic organic product retail

In terms of the trade turnover of organic products by 2024, the most significant growth in one year in Europe occurred in Norway (21.3%) and Luxembourg (20.2%). Hungary ranked third on this podium and second in the European Union with a turnover increase of 13.9%.

The Ecological Agricultural Research Institute (ÖMKi)<a

Tags: bio, Biofach, biotermékek