Global non-GMO food and beverage market reaches $550 billion

The global food and beverage market has a retail value of more than $5 trillion, and non-GMO products accounted for $550 billion of that total in 2014, stated Packaged Facts, a division of Rockville, Md.-based MarketResearch.com, in its July “Non-GMO Foods: U.S. and Global Market Perspective” report. The United States accounts for 36 percent of that $550 billion, with sales of $200 billion.

Also in the United States, there is a steady, ongoing increase in the number of products identified as non-GMO, stated David Sprinkle, research director, Packaged Facts. New non-GMO product launches here are now estimated to be about 2,000 per year — up from just a few hundred a decade ago. This growth is taking place in both the retail market and foodservice. Driving the market is an expanding desire on the part of consumers to have more healthful foods with fewer added ingredients or aspects that are not “natural,” even though that term has not been officially defined by either the FDA or USDA. 

Organic and natural foods accounted for the lion’s share of domestic non-GMO sales, with 60 percent of the U.S. market last year. Packaged Facts said it expects this share to increase to about three-fourths of overall non-GMO retail sales by 2019. The increase of organic/natural as a part of non-GMO reflects the increasing popularity of organic food specifically — and natural foods more generally — among American consumers; the linkage between organic and non-GMO in consumer understanding; and the probability that no resolution will be achieved on a national level regarding mandatory GMO labeling on food and beverage products.

Looking ahead, Packaged Facts said it forecasts the total global market for non-GMO foods and beverages to almost double by 2019 due to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15 percent between 2014-2019, outpacing the CAGR for U.S. non-GMO sales. Nevertheless, the United States' share of the global non-GMO market will hold at about one-third.