Organic food is increasingly finding its way onto the menus of public establishments, bars and restaurants. According to the ISMEA survey conducted in collaboration with FIPE and AssoBio and presented on May 23, 2023, at the event ‘Organic in Commercial Catering,’ organic reaches half of bars and 70 percent of restaurants.
Organic in bars and restaurants, the numbers
Data collection was conducted in September and October 2022 from a representative sample of national bars and restaurants and collected more than 2,000 telephone interviews.
ISMEA, which analyzes out-of-home (organic) consumption for the first time, provides a new perspective on analysis for organic.
In a context that sees a physiological slowdown in the growth of organic food consumption at home, after the significant rates of increase to which organic had accustomed us for years, monitoring the Horeca, even on aspects of a purely qualitative nature can provide, in fact, valuable elements to guide policy and supply chain choices.
(Fabio Del Bravo, Head of ISMEA’s Rural Development Services Directorate)
Breakfast and appetizers, the organic offering in every second bar
Of the approximately 111 thousand active bars on the Italian territory, one in two offers organic food and beverages. The incidence is highest in outlets in cities in Central and Northern Italy and with more than 6 employees.
On average, almost 20 percent of food and beverages offered at these establishments are organic products, with fruit, milk and wine being more represented.
Breakfast and aperitif are indicated by operators as the most suitable consumption occasions for the inclusion of organic offerings. Organic produce sells for nearly 15 percent more, on average, than its conventional counterpart.
Organic in two out of three restaurants
In restaurants, the presence of organic food and beverages is more prevalent. It concerns two-thirds of the more than 157,000 active restaurants on the Italian scene.
Organic is more prevalent in restaurants in Central Italy (over 76 percent) and the Northwest (69 percent), in linear progression with the number of employees. From 60 percent in restaurants with only one employee to 81 percent in those with more than 49 employees.
Within these establishments, organic accounts for more than 30 percent in value of purchases, with peaks of 42 percent in the case of vegetables and 34 percent forextra virgin olive oil. Again, the organic product generates a premium of nearly 17 percent, justified by a surplus in procurement costs.
Side dishes and appetizers are the dishes where the presence of organic products is most significant.
Promising prospects
Finding organic food and drinks in bars and restaurants may be easier in the near future:
– more than 80 percent of restaurant owners and almost all bar operators surveyed say they intend to confirm the purchase of the same quantities of organic products,
– 13.5 percent of restaurants could become exclusively organic establishments, a share that drops to 6 percent for bars.
The drivers of out-of-home consumption
The research highlights the drivers of out-of-home consumption: sustainability, environment, ethics and fair remuneration along the supply chain. And it emphasizes the key role of organic agriculture in such topical areas as food security, healthy eating, environmental sustainability and combating climate change.
‘The focus on organic production is testimony to how consumers today are increasingly aware of the need to combine their own well-being and health with the well-being and health of the planet by respecting the land, seasonality, quality and safety. All values promoted by FIPE with the Catering Manifesto presented and signed last April 28 on Catering Day‘ (Luciano Sbraga, Director of the FIPE-Confcommercio Study Center).
Marta Strinati
Notes
(1) FIPE, ASSOBIO AND ISMEA: catering looks to organic. ISMEA, press release. 26.5.23 https://www.ismea.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeBLOB.php/L/IT/IDPagina/12336
Professional journalist since January 1995, he has worked for newspapers (Il Messaggero, Paese Sera, La Stampa) and periodicals (NumeroUno, Il Salvagente). She is the author of journalistic surveys on food, she has published the book "Reading labels to know what we eat".
