Sales promotion for organic food

Superquinn begins a six- week campaign today to promote organic produce. All organic groceries will be sold at a 10 per cent discount in stores in Limerick and Blackrock and Lucan in Dublin and there will be special offers in fresh food departments.

The higher cost of organic produce is one of the greatest barriers for consumers, according to Ms Paula Mee, Superquinn's nutrition manager.

A recent Bord Bia survey showed that 68 per cent of people who did not buy organic food in the previous three months cited cost as the main reason.

Ms Mee said organic produce "does require and does deserve a premium price because it is so laborious.

"But we have to be realistic about what the customer is willing to pay and it's finding the balance that's important," she said.

The Bord Bia survey found that most consumers were willing to pay up to a 20 per cent premium for the produce, but 48 per cent of those surveyed said they would not pay more than that. Some 73 per cent said they would not pay a premium of 30 per cent.

Superquinn sells more than 215 organic foods and groceries, including meat, jam, olive oil, ice-cream, cornflakes, rice-cakes,baby food and coffee.

She said customer demand had risen by 100 per cent each year, since the organic range was introduced three years ago. "The demand is greatest for beef, lamb, vegetables, fruits, bread and dairy foods," Ms Mee said.

The supermarket's margin on fruit and vegetables was very low as it was trying to keep prices down and encourage sales, she said. As more farmers started supplying organic produce, the price would become more attractive.

Over the next six weeks, organic producers will be at the three stores to meet customers. Superquinn will also experiment with the positioning of organic produce to see if customers prefer to see the produce placed with conventional foods or placed in a separate organic section.