LA FARGE, Wis.–Organic Valley’s sales were $520 million in 2009, down 1.3 percent from 2008, making it the first time the cooperative experienced lower year-over-year sales since its formation in 1988. However, the company said it remained profitable.
“In the context of job losses, declining home values and other enormous economic pressures, we believe the relatively small decline shows that consumers remain committed to both organic food and the family farmers who produce it,” said George Siemon, chief executive officer and founding farmer at Organic Valley.
Beginning in July, Organic Valley farmer-owners reduced their milk output by 7 percent. That allowed the cooperative to maintain a stable pay price at a time when conventional and other organic milk producers were slashing pay prices. “You cannot save organic family farms by paying farmers less than the cost of producing their milk,” Siemon said.
The company reported it is hopeful for 2010 sales and sites market research firm Mintel, who said recent survey data showed that nearly 40 percent of consumers claimed they hadn’t changed organic-product purchasing habits because of the recession and only 3 percent had stopped buying organic products altogether. “Though they remain cautious, consumers don’t see organic food as a luxury item,” Siemon noted. “They see it as essential to the health of their families and our planet.”