Organic cucumbers are a rising star in the produce department
The Packer’s Organic Fresh Trends 2023 survey is valuable to marketers and retailers seeking to answer the question, “Who is my organic consumer?” In mid-October of 2022, more than 1,000 U.S. consumers were asked about their organic purchasing habits.
Organic cucumbers sales soared 14% higher in 2021, according to retail scan data from IRI.
At $131.6 million, organic cucumber sales in 2021 were up 14% in value compared with 2020. Volume jumped 14.5% to 39.9 million pounds in 2021, while the average price per pound for organic cucumbers was $3.29 per pound, off 2 cents per pound compared with 2020, according to IRI data.
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Organic cucumbers sales accounted for 10% of all retail cucumber sales and owned for 1.7% of total organic produce sales in 2021, according to IRI scan data.
Thirteen percent of consumers say they shop exclusively for organic cucumbers, according to The Packer's Organic Fresh Trends 2023, while 34% say they shop for organic cucumbers at least periodically.
Organic cucumber preference isn't closely tied to income, as Organic Fresh Trends 2023 reported that 15% of shoppers making less than $25,000 per year said they exclusively shop for organic cucumbers, compared with 12% of those making more than $100,000.
Gender difference in organic cucumber preference also is musted, with 14% of men shoppers and 13% of women shoppers indicating they exclusively shop for organic cucumbers.
A bigger difference was noted among shoppers with dependent children, 19% of whom said they exclusively shop for organic cucumbers. That compares with just 9% of shoppers with no kids who say exclusively shop for organic cucumbers.
By far, the biggest indicator of consumer preference for organic cucumbers was age. Twenty percent of shoppers from 18-29 years old said they shopped exclusively for organic cumbers, compared with only 6% of consumers over 60 years old who indicated that.
