Top trends

Certified crop landscapes witnessed dynamic shifts, marked by robust growth in oil palm and cotton, modest gains in tea and bananas, and notable declines in cocoa and coffee.

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OVERVIEW

PRODUCTION TRENDS IN BRIEF

1 Slower growth or even decline for some commodities

2 Increased coverage of agricultural land, but standard compliance loses ground

3 Dominance of single-sector standards (those certifying one commodity) in some sectors

4 The big four: Cotton, oil palm, cocoa and sugarcane

5 Organic is the top standard in terms of total area certified, but others are growing faster

6 Europe and North America drive demand; growth in other regions is not at the same pace

IN NUMBERS

Cotton

6.7 million+ hectares certified

This represents at least 20.3% of the global cotton area, with 14.6% by Better Cotton.

Oil palm

3.3 million+ hectares certified

This represents at least 11.6% of the global oil palm area, with 11.6% by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil.

Cocoa

2.5 million+ hectares certified

This represents at least 21.7% of the global cocoa area, with 17.5% by UTZ.

Sugarcane

2.3 million+ hectares certified

This represents at least 8.8% of the global sugarcane area, with 7.1% by Bonsucro.

Soybean

2.2 million+ hectares certified

This represents at least 1.7% of the global soybean, with 1% by RTRS.

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EXPANDING LAND FOR SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTS: GENERAL TRENDS

2017–2021

+11%

2017–2018

+7.9%

2018–2019

+1.8%

2019–2020

-4.2%

2020–2021

+7.1%

2017–2021: continued but uneven growth

The minimum certified area for agricultural commodities expanded by 11%

Oil palm

+32.8%

Cotton

+29.9%

Sugarcane

+17.2%

Soybeans

+17.2%

The smallest growth rates were recorded for tea, at 13.8%, and bananas, at 5.4%. The minimum certified cocoa area shrank by 13.1% and the minimum certified coffee area dropped by 32.8%

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2020–2021: Ups and downs

Cotton

+17.3%

Sugarcane

+10.2%

Soybeans

+6.5%

Tea

+6.2%

Oil palm

+2.3%

Cotton grew by 17.3% and sugarcane grew by 10.2%. Soybean, tea and oil palm grew by less than 10%

On the decline Coffee (-2.5%), bananas (-2.7%) and cocoa (-3.5%).

Cocoa and coffee have the biggest certified share of cultivated land

More information →

Twelve agricultural voluntary standards and eight commodities analysed

Standard compliance rose for some crops, but others lost ground

Global area certified

2020

at least 7.5%

2021

at least 7.9%

Cocoa area

2020: at least 21.4%

2021: at least 21.7%

Cotton area

2020: at least 14.6%

2021: at least 20.3%

Coffee area

2020: at least 15.2%

2021: at least 14.5%

Oil palm area

2020: at least 11.7%

2021: at least 11.6%

Tea area

2020: at least 14.1%

2021: at least 14.5%

Sugarcane area

2020: at least 7.9%

2021: at least 8.8%

ORGANIC LEADS THE WAY...

2021:

Organic is the sustainability standard with the largest variety of agricultural products and has by far the largest area certified.

Agricultural land certified as organic (including areas becoming organic-certified): 76.4 million hectares This represents 1.6% of agricultural land worldwide.

5.2 million hectares

4.8 million hectares

4.5 million hectares

4.3 million hectares

Each represents a global share of 0.09%–1.1%.

2017–2021:

Seven of the 12 agricultural standards grew in double digits

+60.3%

+50.7%

+38.3%

+34.8%

2020–2021:

Four of the 12 agricultural standards experienced double-digit area growth, with ProTerra and Rainforest Alliance achieving the highest growth rate

+26.6%

+25.9%

Discover the standards

Consumption trends in brief

Consumption fell during the pandemic...

This report contains data from 2021, the most recent data prepared for publication. Since then, the Covid-19 pandemic has hit the global economy hard, with global disposable incomes decreasing and lockdowns restricting access to restaurants, travel, and retail. Many households have reduced their spending on non-essential, higher-priced products and services, including items covered by certified sustainability standards.

But consumers are seeking sustainable options

Demand has increased, however, for nutritious, healthy and safe products that protect animal and human welfare. Buyers, traders, manufacturers and retailers are using sustainability standards to show consumers and governments that their supply chains comply with safeguarding requirements. These trends vary by geography and commodity market. In developed countries, there are greater prospects for expanding sustainable consumption. In low- and middle-income countries, the biggest barriers are prohibitive costs and a lack of education on sustainability issues in the value chains.

How can we encourage sustainable consumption?

While the pandemic led to an overall drop in consumption of non-essential products, it also sparked greater demand for certified products, with traditional markets in Europe and North America continuing to lead. Consumers in these markets are paying more attention to companies’ environmental and social claims and are willing to pay more for ethical products. In general terms supply of vss-compliant products continues to outpace demand. To balance the market, demand must increase in emerging economies and producing countries that are also major consumers (particularly in Asia).

Crucial next steps to boost sustainable consumption include:

Educating consumers on the true social and environmental costs of production and the impact of their purchases

Making products more affordable in non-traditional markets

Passing regulations and policies to encourage sourcing and consumption

Unless otherwise stated, sector-specific data show the global minimum. For methodological reasons, we refer to minimum possible values. We assume that multiple sustainability standards certify all areas. The minimum corresponds to the standard with the largest compliant area operating within a given sector. Crop areas, shares and growth rates might thus be considerably higher.