The Size of the Organic Industry in North America

Organic producers are certified organic through an approved Organic Certifying Agency according to the following Standards:

• NOP (USDA National Organic Program)
• COR (CFIA Canadian Organic Regime)

United States

The USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) conducted a survey targeting all US Producers that are certified to a US approved certifying agency. The response rate for the total census count (15,806) was 60%.

• 5 million organic acres in the US in 2016
  • 15 percent increase in certified acres from 2015 to 2016
• 14,217 Certified USA Organic Farms in 2016
  • 11 percent increase in farm number from 2015 to 2016
• $7.6 billion in sales of organic commodities in 2016 (56% crops)
  • 23 percent increase in sales from 2015 to 2016
• California has the highest number of farms, acreage, and sales

Heat Map of Organic Producers by Number.

Image Retrieved from:  NASS Highlights. 2016 Organic Survey.  October 2017. No 1017-6.

Canada

The Canadian Organic Trade Association (COTA) collects data and research annually to assess the size of the organic industry. Most recent data is from 2018.

2018 Summary

• 3 million Canadian Acres in 2018
• 7263 Organic Operations in 2018 (up 14% from 2017)
• Prairie Provinces represent 1/3 of Organic Producers
  • Increasing trend of organic operations
  • Increasing trend of organic acres

Data from: Organic Agriculture in the Prairies. 2018 Data. Published June 2019.

Retrieved from: COTA. Organic Agriculture in the Prairies. 2018 Data. Published June 2019.

Retrieved from: COTA. Organic Agriculture in the Prairies. 2018 Data. Published June 2019.

2017 Summary

By The Numbers

• 45 percent increase in organic acres since 2011
• 6,365 Canadian organic operations in 2017 (up 16% from 2016)
• 4,800 Canadian organic producers in 2017 (up 13% from 2016)
• 1,865 Canadian organic processors in 2017 (up 6% from 2016)
• 745 Canadian organic livestock operations ( up 8% since 2016)
• 4 percent increase in organic farms since 2011

Retrieved from: https://canada-organic.myshopify.com/ COTA. Organic in Canada by the Numbers. 2017 Operator and Acreage Data. Released October 2018.

By the Acres

• 2 million Canadian acres in 2017
• 45 percent increase in organic acres since 2011
• Total acres and farms continue to decrease, while organic acres and farms increase since 2011

Retrieved from: https://canada-organic.myshopify.com/ COTA. Organic in Canada by the Numbers. 2017 Operator and Acreage Data. Released October 2018.

By Province

• Largest number of operations in Quebec and Ontario
• Largest organic acreage in Saskatchewan, BC and Alberta
• Saskatchewan represents over a third of Organic Acres

Retrieved from: https://canada-organic.myshopify.com/ COTA. Organic in Canada by the Numbers. 2017 Operator and Acreage Data. Released October 2018.

Retrieved from: https://canada-organic.myshopify.com/ COTA. Organic in Canada by the Numbers. 2017 Operator and Acreage Data. Released October 2018.

By Category

• Most of organic acres are under pasture, forage, green manure and natural or ecological areas
• 1,021,700 total Canadian Organic acres under field crop production

Calculated from: https://canada-organic.myshopify.com/ COTA. Organic in Canada by the Numbers. 2017 Operator and Acreage Data. Released October 2018.