France

In 2008, 583'799 hectares, constituting 2 percent of the agricultural land were under organic management in France, an increase of almost 5 percent compared with 200 and tripled compared since 1999. The in-conversion area rose by 34 percent. 

There were 13'298 farms, an increase of 11 % compared with 2007.

Sales of organic food in France jumped 25 percentand more than 60 percent in three years to reach 2.6 billion Euros, according to Agence Bio. Agence Bio expects the French organic food sector to continue growing, although maybe at a slower rate, as more consumers seek to avoid pesticides and genetically-modified organism. The government is also encouraging organic food in schools and restaurants.The share of organic food in total food sales was at 1.7 percent in 2008, against 1.1 percent in 2007.

To meet swelling demand, farmers increasingly switched to organic agriculture with the land devoted to organic food nearly tripling in nine years to 580'000 hectares, against 210'000 hectares in 1999, Agence Bio said. Compared with 2007, the total organically managed land increased by 5 percent; the in-conversion area by 34 percent.

• Statistics page at the Agence Bio Homepage

• 2008 data
  • Agence Bio: Organic agriculture statistics France 2008: Land use, crops, livestock
  • Agence Bio: Press information of May 29, 2009 (1.4 MB)
• 2007 data
  • Agence Bio: Production statistics 2007 (French)
  • Agence Bio: Broshure Organic farming statistics for France 'chiffres clés'

• Agence Bio
  Agence Bio is a government funded agency that promotes organic farming in France. It runs promotion campaigns and provides the organic farming statistics for France (French).
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• Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries
  Organic farming homepage