Coffee dominated U.S. organic import value for selected commodities in 2011

As Americans have become more health conscious, the demand for organically grown food has increased. In response to this increased demand, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection began officially collecting data on trade of organic agricultural products last year. The chart compiles data now available for selected imports, including fruits, vegetables, coffee, tea, grains, and soybeans. For calendar year 2011, organic agricultural imports totaled $670 million (organic exports totaled $412 million). Just over $526 million in coffee was imported, with the majority of it unroasted. Organic coffee accounted for about 7 percent of total coffee imports. Organic products accounted for a fairly high share of import values of some products-for example, 46 percent of "other soybeans," 31 percent of black tea, and 20 percent of green tea imports were organic. This chart is made from data in the March 2012 Fruit and Tree Nuts Outlook, FTS-351.

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