Trade group says millennials’ organic habits will continue into parenthood

A new survey on the attitude of U.S. families on organic food released by the Organic Trade Association (OTA) shows that millennials becoming parents will only increase the strong preference for organic food shared by this generation.

Twenty-five percent of the American millennials currently are parents. In the next 10 to 15 years that is projected to increase to 80 percent of millennials.

“As more members of this generation become parents, their presence in the organic market will just get stronger,” said Laura Batcha, CEO and executive director of the OTA. “Over the next 10 years, we’ll see a surge of new organic eaters and consumers –  the millennial parents of tomorrow and their children.”

The OTA said the survey shows that consumers who always or most of the time choose organic are driven by a strong belief that selecting organic for their family makes them a better parent. For these buyers is the number one motivator is seeking out healthy, nutritious choices for themselves and their children. Consumer concerns about the effects of pesticides, hormones and antibiotics on an individual’s health and the health of that individual’s children, along with the desire to avoid highly processed foods and artificial ingredients for the family were also top reasons to buy organic.

For the first time in the history of the survey, baby food ranked as the top category for which respondents said that buying organic is extremely important, surpassing the fruits and vegetables category. Food targeted to kids was also among the categories most important for buying organic.

The survey also showed that the parenting kids receive also shapes their buying habits as adults. Heavy buyers of organic are much more likely to have been raised eating organic foods and being taught to make organic choices.

More millennials shop for groceries online than older parents, 40 percent compared to 30 percent. Online grocery shopping is still in its early stages, but the survey revealed that attitudes regarding online grocery shopping point to a bright future for organic. Twenty percent of those surveyed said they like the quality of organic produce purchased online, 17 percent said online grocery shopping is a convenient and easy way to shop organic, and ten percent reported an increase in organic purchases because of online shopping.

As with online grocery shopping, Millennial parents are much more likely to purchase or use online meal kits than older parents (37 percent versus 27 percent). And while all groups liked the idea of getting meal kits as a gift, Millennials without kids was the most enthusiastic about that concept.

“Americans are eating more organic than ever before. Organic sales reached nearly $50 billion last year, driven in large part by the Millennial consumer,” said Batcha. “Millennials having children over the next 10 – 15 years are projected to be a generation of highly engaged organic consumers.”

The study reflects responses of more than 1,800 households throughout the country consisting of individuals between the ages of 18 and 64 years old. Responses were collected online between May 22, 2017, and June 7, 2017.