Ever since the pandemic hit the world, people have deep down understood that health is the real wealth. With the increased awareness towards quality and organic food eating habits among people, a steep increase in the demand for organic food products can be seen in the Indian market.
We see people are opting for organic products rather than other regular products for a better and healthy life. Although, there is still a long way to go for the organic food market in India. As per a study, India which holds almost 20 percent of the world population has consumption of only 1 percent organic produce of the total organic produce. Whereas India itself is the country with the largest farmlands in the world. With such data and numbers, it is easy to understand that there are yet a lot of hindrances being faced by organic food products in the Indian market.
Limited Awareness: There still goes a prejudice in Indian society that has made organic food a sign of status and luxury rather than a basic benchmark. A lot of people think it symbolizes one’s quality of life. Hence, the word-of-mouth medium might have increased awareness of the term ‘organic’ but more as a status symbol and less as a sustainable solution.
Making Choices for a Lower Priced Product: Indian markets house price-sensitive customers with huge variances in their disposable income capacity. Hence even a slight difference in the prices of food products can make him or her opt for a cheaper option rather than going for a better-quality, fairly priced product. This leads to a huge fraction of the Indian diaspora opting out of the organic food product market.
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Non-friendly Retail Market: Retailers will always prefer to fill in the shelves with a fast-moving cheaper product rather than risky shelf space for a lesser-known organic product. Organic keyword on the other hand puts the retailer in an anxious state of return on investments. This leads to a major gap between the buyer and the seller for organic food products in the Indian market.
Traditional Farming Habits: The farmers of the Indian farming sector have become too acquainted with chemical fertilizers. The majority of farmers do not opt for an organic way of farming for the fear that the change might not bring them results like chemical fertilizer-based farming does.
Administrative Support: At present, the subsidies available for chemical fertilizers by the Governing bodies make it cheaper and more accessible for the farming sector. Hence better awareness among farmers in terms of educating them with the benefits of organic farming while giving them the needed administrative guidance is very important. Along with this, a safety net of recovery on crop losses and subsidizing organic farming will also help in boosting the organic food market in India.
Understanding the Demand and Supply Gaps: There are times when some of the organic food products are being supplied in the market more than their demand and on the other hand the other more demanded organic food products see merely no supplies. This gap needs to be filled and balanced to have a balanced organic food market in India. For example, The demand for jaggery powder is higher in Uttar Pradesh in comparison with its supply.
There is yet a long way to go for the organic food product market in India. But we cannot deny the fact that over the past few years organic food products are gaining spotlight and popularity among people. This is just not limited to urban areas but rural as well, primarily because access to information has made everyone understand the benefits of organic farming and adopting a healthier lifestyle. There is hope that we would see not just more organic food products but also innovation in the Indian market if the major challenges are tackled in time. Despite all these challenges the organic food market in India seems to be moving ahead gradually, especially post Covid.
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