A reduction in demand for organic foods, in addition to fierce competition from retail giants Rewe, Spar and Hofer, is forcing Austria’s organic supermarkets to scale back their ambitions.
German organic supermarket chain Basic, which had stated its intention to open over 10 outlets throughout Austria, has now decided to open just a third store, in Vienna or Salzburg, according to Der Standard.
The Livit chain has reportedly filed for bankruptcy, with pioneer Stefan Maran selling a 60 per cent share of his company to German trader Dennree. Of Austria’s organic supermarkets, only Biomarket is still under Austrian ownership.
For the current year, wholesaler Achleitner is anticipating a further drop in organic sales, Der Standard reports, while AL Naturkost is expecting stagnation.
According to market research firm AC Nielsen, Austria’s organic market was worth nearly €630m in 2007. However, it expects growth rates to halve to 9.9 per cent in 2008.
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