Organic oranges brought in more than $36 million in 2019 and comprised 3.8% of the retail orange category, according to data from IRI. Lemons grossed a similar dollar amount but made a bit more of an impact on retail lemon sales, accounting for 5.5% of the lemon category, IRI reports. Limes saw less organic demand, bringing in $9.7 million in 2019, which equaled just 1.9% of the lime category, IRI noted.
Age plays a huge role in organic orange purchases, according to Organic Fresh Trends 2021, with shoppers younger than 40 comprising the age group most likely to always grab organic oranges. Twenty-one percent of consumers in the lowest income bracket said they always selected organic oranges, and 14% of those age 30-39 said the same.
African American shoppers were the most likely ethnic group to select organic oranges at least some of the time, followed by Asian shoppers. Hispanics and those in the “other” ethnic group were the least likely to choose organic oranges periodically.
It’s clear that income plays a role in organic lemon purchases, but it’s the inverse of what might be expected. Shoppers earning less than $50,000 annually were more likely to buy organic lemons periodically than those earning more.
Families with kids were more likely to always buy organic lemons, at 14%, than those without kids, at 11%. The likelihood of an organic-only lemon purchase in 2020 decreased as the number of children in the household increased.
When it came to lime purchases, Westerners were less likely to always buy organic limes than those in the Midwest, South or Northeast.
