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Organic products in Spain
- widely produced and scarcely consumed
Heading: To talk about organic farming in Spain is to talk about exporting productions. Spain is a producing power aided by favourable climatic conditions, with competitive crops, specially during certain seasons. However, consumption of organic products in the country is still very low.
National production and foreign market
Spain is one the ten countries with the largest surface area devoted to organic farming in the world, with a total of 926.390 hectares registered in 2006. Andalusia, with 537.269,39 hectares, represents 60% of the total. The Andalusian Government's support has translated into a spectacular increase in the land used for organic production, although most of these concentrate on exporting, which weakens the sector by making it dependent on foreign markets. Nonetheless, with the Andalusian Plan for the Development of Organic Farming in 2004, there will be an attempt to promote the consumption of biological products within the region, an aim which the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Foodstuffs has recently adopted with a great display of resources. In 2006, the over 19.000 agriculturists and livestock farmers and almost 2.000 manufacturing companies registered in the different Organic Agriculture Committees reached a value of production exceeding 300 million euros, 80% of which came from exporting. On the contrary, the consumption of organic products within Spain was of 0,23% of the total foodstuff consumption. If we compare this level of product presence with Italy's 1,6%, to state a similar country, the large distance left to cover becomes obvious. In Spain, organic products were first sold directly in the estates that produced them and some dietetic food stores would sporadically include some goods. In the second half of the seventies some stores emerged catering specifically for natural foodstuffs and alternative products which often answered to ideologies with a strong personal commitment from its promoters. Another variation of direct sales which also grew were traveling markets, which would eventually represent a basic part of the sector's image. Later on wholesalers surfaced and attained a certain significance, as well as some brands with a more widespread presence, and then the distribution to supermarkets began, which will even eventually lead to selling products with generic brands owned by these chains.
Quality and respect for the environment
The marketing of products from organic agriculture and livestock farming and which are manufactured without the use of synthesis of chemicals is favoured by the generalised concern about the quality of food seen in consumers today. Moreover, its contribution to alleviate and invert the processes of environmental degradation is increasingly applauded. Socially, organic farms are a basic part of rural evelopment and a natural ally of fair trade outlines. Nevertheless, the general lack of information, in fact, of training, often helps towards not finding a direct relation between, for example, the decrease in the ozone layer and the current system of lettuce cultivation. Furthermore, the difficulty of accessing outlets, and often, the insufficient and irregular availability of the products, delay widespread consumption. A last obstacle, which will gain importance depending on the way the previous points are resolved, is the difference in prices. We are now in a situation in which, surprisingly so, products aren't valued and there is great pressure to reduce their prices, beyond the logic costs of a normal production.
Product distribution and identification
The use of labeling and identifiable signs allows the consumer to distinguish between a conventional product and an organic one. However, the wide variety of existing labels can generate confusion for the consumer, who finds it impossible to know them all. In order to avoid this, there have been some initiatives like the common label which the European Union has established and which, for the time being, is not really working seeing as it isn't mandatory and can only be used when the products are manufactured in Europe. In Spain there is no common image for all certified products. The labeling diversity of organic products represents a further restraint for the generalisation of its consumption, since many consumers find it hard to tell if the product they are buying comes from organic farming or if it is simply a prebiotic product. The most influential channel in the distribution of organic products in Europe nowadays is, probably, supermarkets which exclusively sell organic foodstuffs and similar non-food products. With a simple approach regarding image, but with a ample supply, which allows the client to fill up their shopping trolley for the week. Currently there are various initiatives in Spain which are supporting the modernisation of the sector. For eample, in Barcelona, birthplace of organic consumption in the country, the firm Veritas already has ten outlets which bring the product closer to new consumers. As well as the sixteen outlets owned by the Valencian company Terra Verda, who, in this case have a combination of organic products and products with a more dietetic profile.
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