◊ By Benefit Publishing Bureau

 Note: To find all organic brands, organic shops and organic product suppliers in India, buy the Organic Directory 

As per the European Commission’s agricultural market brief, Organic imports in the EU – A First Analysis – Year 2018, the organic agriproduct to be exported most prolifically to the EU is tropical fruit (fresh or dried), nuts and spices, to the tune of 793,597 tonne (27.2% of the total amount of organic agrifood imports of EU).

TOP 10 ORGANIC AGRIFOODS EXPORTED TO EU (VOLUME-WISE)

1] Tropical Fruit (Fresh or Dried), Nuts and Spices: The organic agriproduct to be exported most prolifically to the EU is tropical fruit (fresh or dried), nuts and spices, to the tune of 793,597 tonne (27.2% of the total amount of organic agrifood imports of EU).

It is mainly sourced from Ecuador (252,015 tonne)—followed by the Dominican Republic (246,341 tonne) and Peru (137,235 tonne). Columbia exports 18,952 tonne of this product; Mexico exports 12,835 tonne; Côte d’Ivoire 12,686 tonne; Ghana 11,527 tonne; Turkey 11,494 tonne; and China exports 11,371 tonne.

India does not feature in the top 10 countries that export this product, with a mere 3,798-tonne export volume under the category.

2] Oilcakes: The EU imports 352,043 tonne of organic oilcakes—mainly from China (310,535 tonne or 74.8% of the total amount of oilcakes imported into the EU). Ukraine exports 2,564 tonne of oilcakes to the EU; the UAE 3,000 tonne; India 17,260 tonne; and Brazil 4,234 tonne.

3] Cereals, other than Wheat and Rice: The EU imports 255,764 tonne of organic cereals, other than wheat and rice—chiefly from Ukraine, to the tune of 114,201 tonne, constituting 42.8% of its entire EU organic agrifood basket. It is Ukraine’s top exported product. Also, 47,012 tonne is exported from Turkey; 36,578 tonne from the UAE; 5,336 tonne from Peru; and 364 tonne from Ecuador.

India did not export under this product category in 2018.

4] Wheat: The EU imports 243,797 tonne of wheat—75,971 tonne from Ukraine; 52,090 tonne from Turkey; and 43,648 tonne from the UAE.

India did not export under this product category in 2018.

5] Rice: The EU imports 216,017 tonne of organic rice—chiefly from the United States—which exported organic rice to the tune of 147,924 tonne to the EU in 2018. This makes up 68.5% of the total organic rice imported by the EU in the same year.

Pakistan exported 21,144 tonne of organic rice; India 19,332 tonne; Thailand 10,522 tonne; Cambodia 8,467 tonne; Argentina 4,363 tonne; Turkey 3,582 tonne; Brazil 440 tonne; and Laos 160 tonne.

6] Oilseeds other than Soybeans: In 2018, the EU imported 192,927 tonne of organic oilseeds (excluding soybeans)—20,864 tonne from China; 28,773 tonne from Ukraine; 44,761 tonne from Turkey; 13,892 tonne from India; and 1,680 tonne from Mexico.

7] Beet & Cane Sugar: In 2018, the EU imported 166,328 tonne of organic beet & cane sugar—chiefly from Brazil—to the tune of 53,244 tonne, 73.6% of the country’s total organic agrifood export to the EU.

Although beet & cane sugar is also India’s most exported organic agrifood to the EU, the volume is more modest, at 22,794 tonne.

Ecuador, Peru and Tunisia also export to the EU under this product category, having exported 1,462 tonne, 2,418 tonne and 557 tonne respectively in 2018.

8] Vegetables (Fresh, Chilled and Dried): In 2018, the EU imported 148,108 tonne of organic vegetables (fresh, chilled and dried) — 10,671 tonne from China; 1,856 tonne from Ecuador; 3,552 from Ukraine; 34,186 tonne from Turkey; 3,954 tonne from USA; 5,223 tonne from UAE; and 120 tonne from Tunisia.

India did not export under this product category in 2018.

9] Fruit, Fresh or Dried (excluding Citrus & Tropical Fruit): In 2018, the EU imported 147,114 tonne of organic fruit (fresh or dried, excluding citrus and tropical fruit). Under this category, Argentina and Turkey are the top two exporters, contributing 30,522 tonne and 30,401 tonne respectively. New Zealand ranks 3^rd, with 16,845 tonne of export share. Chile exports 14,616 tonne; Serbia 13,199 tonne; Ukraine 12,955 tonne; Morocco 5,147 tonne; USA 3,994 tonne and South Africa 3,840 tonne.

India did not export under this product category in 2018.

10] Unroasted Coffee, Tea in Bulk & Maté: In 2018, the EU imported 127,940 tonne of organic unroasted coffee, tea in bulk & maté. Under this category, Peru is the highest supplier in volume at 39,860 tonne of export; followed by Honduras (39,496 tonne) and Mexico (9,154 tonne). India exported 6,433 tonne; Ethiopia 5,225 tonne; Uganda 4,926 tonne; China 4,030 tonne; Columbia 3,338 tonne and Nicaragua 2,605 tonne.

This wraps up the top 10 organic agrifoods exported to the EU, in terms of volume. However, there are other voluminous exports to the EU also, such as Soybeans (total 105,870 tonne; China 23,479 tonne; India 20,464 tonne); Fruit Juices (total 89,117 tonne; Turkey 22,969 tonne); Cocoa Beans (total 74,220 tonne; Dominican Republic 27,062 tonne); Preparations of Vegetables, Fruits or Nuts (total 55,198 tonne; Dominican Republic 27,062 tonne; Ecuador 10,473 tonne); etc.

Organic palm, palm kernel oils, wine, flours, eggs, honey, instant foods, olive oil, vegetable oils, pasta, and many other products are exported to the EU as well, but in smaller numbers.