Organic Report Fall 2021 - Flipbook - Page 35
MARKET FEATURE: TAIWAN
O
rganic market opportunities in Taiwan continue to grow
as demand and awareness of organic benefits rise among
consumers. Taiwan remains the fifth largest importer of U.S.
organic products, with U.S. organic exports to Taiwan up 28%
reaching $29,382,286 in 2020. Similar to overall trends in 2020,
fresh peaches, blueberries and cherries saw significant growth.
In May 2020, the United States and Taiwan signed an
organic equivalence arrangement, reducing certification
barriers and costs for U.S. exporters. The upward trend in U.S.
exports is a positive indicator for increased trade in the
coming years, and as a recent USDA Foreign Agricultural
Service report notes, “U.S. organic sales in Taiwan are forecast
to grow by almost 50 percent between 2020 to 2025.”
In addition to the bilateral organic equivalency
arrangement with the U.S., Taiwan has ceased to recognize any
foreign organic certification unless the country shares a
bilateral organic equivalency arrangement with Taiwan,
providing a healthy advantage to U.S. organic. The report
continues, “Organic food is becoming popular in Taiwan as
consumers crave natural and environmentally friendly
products, and the organic sector in Taiwan is rapidly growing.”
The demand for organic in Taiwan is only expected to increase
as the demand for healthier alternatives grows as well.
A separate report from Euromonitor notes, “Organic rice is a
major category in Taiwan, contributing nearly half of all value
*
sales coming from the organic rice, pasta and noodles category…
In light of the number of food contamination scandals, and a
focus on food safety, there has been an increase in consumer
awareness on organic beverages as well.” The general consumer
trend towards health and wellness choices in food choices was
already on the rise before the COVID-19 pandemic, and has
since only grown as consumers prioritize healthy eating.
Additionally, the Taiwanese government has removed
barriers to specific certifiers under the 2020 equivalence,
which had previously prohibited all products from certain
certifiers to enter the country, even if only one product from
one company had tested positive for a residue. The
government has also moved to testing products only at the
retail level, consistent with treatment of domestic organic
products. The removal of these trade barriers combined with
the equivalence arrangement will directly serve to grow the
trade relationship for organic between the U.S. and Taiwan.
In 2022, the Organic Trade Association will take advantage
of the increasing market potential by hosting a booth at the
Taipei International Foods show, scheduled for June. We will
provide countertop exhibition space at the show for a handful
of U.S. organic companies looking to explore or expand
business in Taiwan. More details will be available for interested
companies in early 2022.
For more information on the Organic Trade Association’s Organic Worldwide program,
contact Alexis Carey (acarey@ota.com).
Organic Report • Fall 2021
35
