New Year, Clean Start: Here’s Why You Should Eat More Organic Food

According to the analysis of the Organic Agricultural Research Institute (ÖMKi), the retail turnover of organic foods in Hungary shows a steady increase in the product categories measured by the market research company NIQ. In Europe, the turnover of organic products increased by 3% between 2022 and 2023, while in Hungary this development reached 19% during the same period. However, the full picture is that while in Europe in 2023 residents spent an average of 66 euros (approx. 25 thousand HUF) on organic products per year, in Hungary we spent only 9 euros (approx. 3600 HUF) per capita on organic food. By 2024, this amount will increase to 10 euros.

Bio, eco, ecological, maybe organic?

The good news is that no matter what name the customer chooses for the food, they are choosing the same sustainable, environmentally friendly and healthy product. We use the words bio, eco, ecological or organic as equivalent terms for food produced in organic farming. Each name reflects that the product has been produced, controlled and certified under the strict legislative conditions of organic farming.

Healthy soil, healthy food, healthy life – more than chemical-free

Organic farming is one of the most dynamically developing forms of agriculture in the world, combining tradition, scientific research and innovation. Its principles are ecology, health, equity and care, which simultaneously serve the health of soil, plants, animals and humans, in line with the “One Health” approach prevalent in medicine.  To put it simply, organic farming is a sustainable agricultural system that prioritizes local resources and natural processes in production, over external additives and foreign substances. In organic crop production, for example, instead of chemical pesticides, herbicides, synthetic fertilizers and genetically modified organisms, farmers use agrotechnical and biological plant protection, mechanical weed control, organic fertilizers and traditional genetic resources. Thanks to the gentle form of cultivation, food production also serves to preserve soil fertility, the environment and human health. For example, there are much fewer pesticide residues in organic crops.

In animal husbandry, organic farmers implement high animal welfare standards, for example, they provide stables, runs and open areas that are suitable for the animals’ needs, and they do not allow the mutilation of animals. Hormone treatment is not used, and antibiotic treatment is only used for bacterial infections, as a treatment, i.e. antibiotics are not used as routine treatment. The waiting period after using the medicine is much longer than usual.
The detailed requirements of organic farming are prescribed – uniquely among farming systems – by European Union and Hungarian legislation.