How it works:

Where the data comes from

The New Farm® Organic Price Index™ (OPX), is a comparison of terminal market, other wholesale and selected large-scale retail prices for organic and conventional foods and sustainably raised meats. It is updated on Tuesday of each week and represents prices for products gathered on Monday of the same week from markets on the east and west coasts.

This index will use the best available data on the developing wholesale markets for certified organic fresh produce and grains, as well as the emerging national market for certified organic dairy and self-identified sustainably raised meats.

All prices quoted represent wholesale costs except for meats and dairy categories. During some weeks prices will not be available for some products. Availability of product is highly dependent upon factors such as weather and seasonality. This is especially relevant for fruits and vegetables.

Great care is being taken to provide data that is compatible and comparable. To begin with, we have selected products that are generally available in organic and conventional wholesale markets in the same geographic location and marketing area. Over time we will add new products as data becomes available.

Sourcing by category

Fruits & Vegetables
Organic: Organic prices are provided by large wholesale distributors or sales agencies that specialize in organic fruits and vegetables. These organizations perform a sales and distribution function similar to the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Agricultural Marketing Service terminal markets. In an effort to present the most comparable prices we have selected large distributors on the east and west costs that handle product that is within the geographic location and marketing area of the terminal market.

In most cases, organic fruit and vegetables are not available or are not available in sufficient quantities at terminal markets to determine a reliable price. Pricing data from terminal markets may be included in the OPX™, but only when organic prices for a particular item is not available from organic distributors/sales agencies but are reported by Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS).

Conventional: Conventional prices are gathered from AMS terminal markets in Boston and Seattle.

Dairy
Organic: Prices presented in the OPX™ are retail prices from a large retail chain with outlets on the East and West Coasts. Adequate data sources on certified organic dairy products at the farmgate or wholesale level are not currently available.

Conventional: To provide a meaningful comparison, conventional prices are also retail, gathered from a major retail chain with outlets on both coasts.

Grains
Organic: Prices presented are provided with the assistance of the Organic Farmers’ Agency for Relationship Marketing (OFARM). OFARM is a Marketing Agency in Common or MAIC. OFARM represents organic producer groups in 18 states and Canada. To find out more about OFARM visit their website, www.ofarm.org.

Conventional: Conventional prices are based on grain delivered to The Andersons, a large private grain handling firm with elevators in Illinois and Ohio.

Meats
Organic: At this time we could not identify wholesale markets for organic poultry, pork and beef. Specifically, we found the following.

• Poultry: Due to recent sector consolidation, production and distribution of organic poultry is dominated nationally by one company. Due to the company’s concerns regarding releasing their wholesale pricing information this data is not available.
• Pork and Beef: The market is being supplied primarily with "natural" or "raised with care" meats that are technically not organic. While these products are free of hormones and antibiotics they have not been raised with organic feeds. National producers and distributors of pork and beef told us that the natural beef they sell is what their retail restaurants and wholesale consumers (supermarket chains) have requested.

Due to insufficient supply and price availability of wholesale organic meats pricing data presented will be gathered at the retail level and provided by a national supermarket chain that specializes in organic products. Such meats will be labeled organic, natural or raised with care.

Conventional: To maintain price comparability conventional prices will be gathered at a national supermarket retailer located in the same geographic location as the retailer providing organic, natural or raised with care product pricing.

We will update this reporting profile as we secure new sources and the markets evolve.

Organic Price Index™

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