Organic poultry: Consumer perceptions, opportunities, and regulatory issues

Abstract

Organic and all-natural foods have become an alternative in most mainstream retail food outlets. Organic foods, although only 3% of total retail food sales, account for an estimated $17 billion in sales in the United States, and this category has been growing at a rate 7 times faster than the average food category, maintaining a sustained growth rate of more than 15% per year. Organic meat is the fastest growing sector of the organic market, and organic poultry is considered to be a gateway food, drawing in consumers who are just beginning to purchase organic foods. Current organic consumers are a bimodal population consisting of one group in their 20s and a second composed of aging baby boomers. The income distribution is also bimodal, with young parents rebudgeting to pay the higher prices for organic foods at one extreme and older Caucasian families with household incomes in excess of $80,000 at the other. African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and persons with personal or family health issues are more interested in purchasing organic foods than members of the general population. Organic food consumers have traditionally insisted the foods they purchase be raised by local farmers with a strong respect for the environment and, as is the current organic standard, to be free from growth hormones and synthetic chemicals. One of the principal beliefs is that organic foods are safer than conventional foods. Many consumers base this belief in the safety of organic foods on the prohibition of pesticides and chemicals in raising the organic food. However, their understanding of the risks from pathogenic microorganisms on organic foods is not clear. Researchers have documented many common consumer food safety errors in handling conventional poultry. Whether organic poultry has similar food safety issues has yet to be determined.