The organic farming industry has launched a £1.8m campaign to reverse the decline in UK sales. The three-year initiative is called “Why I Love Organic” and has been organised by the industry’s umbrella body, the Organic Trade Board.

It is supported by 70 companies, which will pay a total of £900,000 a year. That figure has been match-funded by Brussels to make up the £1.8m pot.

The campaign will centre on advertisements in a number of national magazines, at public relations events as well as digital marketing. The need for the campaign was highlighted by figures from Brussels, released earlier this month, which showed that the British organic sector lagged behind its EU counterparts in terms of market share. In some EU countries shoppers buy almost four times more organic food than they do in the UK. In Denmark shoppers spend an average of €139 per head each year on organic food while the figure is just €34 in the UK, according to Eurostat figures.

In Switzerland the figure is €132/head/year, Austria €104, Germany €71 and France €47, which means the UK lies a lowly sixth in terms of organic consumption.

Chairman of the OTB, Huw Bowles, said that the term organic was widely misunderstood in Britain. “Through this campaign we want to help consumers to discover exactly what it means and why it’s worth it, with the ultimate aim of driving sales. The adverts aim to challenge perceptions by featuring everyday individuals who would not normally be associated with buying organic,” Mr Bowles said.