The anticipated peak of organic restaurants trend is near – are you ready?
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If Organic is so good for us, what’s stopping all chefs from supplying it at their restaurants?
Price and value continue to be the biggest obstacles in buying organic produce. It’s simple. Organic products typically cost 20 percent to 100 percent more than their conventionally produced equivalents.
As a chef or hospitality entrepreneur, food is so dear to your heart. Naturally, you’d be more knowledgeable of the difference between good and bad quality ingredients. You understand the significance of consuming quality food. Despite this, we understand that delivering organic food to your customers is at times easier said than done – it’s expensive. However, your efforts in persevering are guaranteed to reward your business in future. Why? Because the organic/whole foods industry is booming.
To begin, have you wondered why organic prices are high? Here are the top factors
There’s no chemicals, but hey, something has to make up for it…
Conventional farmers use toxic chemicals and synthetic pesticides, so they finish the job faster,and can therefore afford to reduce production costs. As Organic Farming Research Foundation describes it, it’s substituting labour and intensive management for chemicals, health and the environmental. Whereas organic farmers hire more workers to handle the weeding and cleanup of polluted water etc. Real farming isn’t easy or quick!
Demand overwhelms supply
Organic farmland only accounts for 0.9 percent of total worldwide farmland. Naturally you’d understand why they produce less than conventional farms. This means conventional farming can keep the cost down by producing a product in larger quantities.
Higher cost of fertilizer for organic crops
Unlike conventional farmers who use inexpensive sewage sludge and chemical fertilizers (not sure if you’d like that in your food), organic farmers avoid these by using natural compost and animal manure. These are more expensive to ship.
Crop rotation
With the use of weed-killers and chemicals, crop rotation is much easier for conventional farmers. They can continuously use every acre of land to grow produce. Whereas organic farmers use sophisticated crop rotations to keep their soil healthy. They grow “cover crops” after their original crop has been harvested, which adds nitrogen to the soil to benefit succeeding crops. This results in a slower turn-over cycle (more time = more money).
Post-harvest handling cost
After organic produce is harvested, it must still be separated from conventional produce to avoid cross-contamination. This means it’s shipped in smaller quantities which result in higher shipping costs than conventional products which are shipped in massive numbers. Also, organic farms are usually located farther from major cities, increasing the shipping cost.
Organic certification
Obtaining an organic certification means annual fees starting from $400 to $2,000 a year (depending on the agency and the size of the operation). Also, employees must be hired to maintain strict daily records that must be available for inspection at any time!
Better living conditions for livestock
Higher standards for animal welfare also means more costs for organic farms - they can cost double that of conventional livestock feed.
What’s the good news for you as a chef?
The more you use organic products, the greater the demand, thus the lower the cost. And it’s already begun. According to Australian Organic, the demand for organics is outstripping supply by 40 per cent. It’s expected to continue on this growth path, which will create a greater affordability to drive this trajectory. Simultaneously, consumers are becoming increasingly aware of food and product labels/content. More than ever before, they’re now reading nutritional panels and seeking information about the ingredients in their food. Hence the significant increase in whole food and organic cafes and restaurants.
The call is out to you, consumers are looking for organics, can you help them?
The organic industry is now valued at over $1.72 billion, representing a 15.4 per cent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) since 2009. Australian Organic said the growth demonstrated that consumption of certified organic food, cosmetics and household products was at a “record high” in Australia.
Even those who aren’t green are subconsciously turning green because they know it’s better. Organic purchases by those who are not categorized as green or sustainable consumers also increased from 24 per cent in 2012 to 40 per cent in 2014, more info here. Meanwhile, according to the USDA ‘Consumer demand for organically produced goods continues to show double-digit growth, providing market incentives for U.S. farmers across a broad range of products.’
In few years when the boom is at it’s absolute peak, will your conventional method of food and kitchen choices still survive the green trend? The current price tag is worth it.
Store owner replied:
Wow! What awesome pics Josh, you look great as usual :) Thanks for your ongoing support.
Whether working the grill, pass or larder. You are always going to look good in the shirt. Comfortable & cool (if you are standing over a coal grill for 12hrs you are gonna sweat no matter what you wear). Always feel proud rolling into a shift in one of these.
Store owner replied:
Wow! You look great Olly, and Thank you for your beautiful review. It's much appreciated and we are sure this will assist other chefs who work in hot environments and want to look and feel cool. Thank you again.
I love the product, comfy and cool to wear. Special the apron really love it with the design.
Store owner replied:
Hi Phillip, thanks for taking the time to leave your comment - glad that you appreciate the quality of the apron which is made here in Australia. You're absolutely correct, this is lightweight denim as we mention on the website. Although it feels lightweight, these aprons last for many years and are absolutely loved by our chefs and I hope that they'll become a firm favourite of yours too. I'm here to assist with any questions you may have.
Store owner replied:
That's great to know that the aprons are comfortable to wear, thanks Nika, your comment is very much appreciated.
I was excited to order and received my 100% organic cotton chef Jackets and Aprons but was disappointed to find that there is a 2% spandex (Lycra) which takes away from the organic that you promote so strongly. Is there a reason for this and why isn’t it on your website under fabric content.
As far as I know the addition of spandex to your products takes it away from the circular economy as it is a synthetic material and makes the whole garment no recyclable.
I have been a chef for over 30 years and don’t think I have ever come across a chefs Jacket with spandex in it (polyester yes) A good fit should make putting a stretch material unnecessary.
Store owner replied:
Hi Sion, Thank you for your review. You are 100% correct, and I personally take full responsibility for this. We have added the fabric content this morning on all products. I can assure you we don't intend to mislead anyone - it was an oversight when changing the product descriptions recently. The 98% cotton is certified organic cotton. The 2% addition of spandex is woven in as when we worked with chefs to develop the collection, they wanted an element of stretch in the garments to allow the garments to be more tailored but move with the wearer to make them super comfortable. I will also email you directly to assist further.
Love it so light weight and breezy good for working in a fast paced kitchen wile still looking sharp cheer
Store owner replied:
Yay! That's great to hear that you're loving the softness of the fabric. Thanks for letting us know and may you enjoy wearing them for many shifts. xxx
This is probably theee best fitting and comfy jacket I’ve ever owned! I’m going to order a few more in the new year!
Thanks again guys for being so easy about the return due to them not fitting properly!
Thanks
Store owner replied:
You chose well Amanda! So glad he loves the fit and comfort of it. Thanks for letting us know.
Very flattering shirt. My only comment would be that the small is quite small. I’m a straight size 8 and I feel this is more like a size 6.5-7. But I’m still very happy with it.
Store owner replied:
Glad you like the flattering fit of this chef shirt Kaye. Thanks for letting us know about the sizing, we will consider this if we repeat this style in the future.
I have been a professionally trained cook for the past 40 years, so I have come through the traditional whites in a brigade system.
So far one of the best aprons / gear you can see some thought has been put into the design
Very nice
Les
Store owner replied:
Thank YOU Mr Leslie. Sorry you had to wait 40 years to wear "one of the best" but glad you found Cream Collection eventually. Enjoy every moment wearing the gear.
Was a present for my son. He is very happy with it.
Store owner replied:
Thanks Bea for your 5 star review, glad you love the comfort of the chef shirt. Enjoy!
I purchased the white Jo apron. Great quality apron, however the design was slightly different from the other photos of the same apron in different colours. I would prefer the pen pocket to be straight at the top (rather than slanted) and from an aesthetic standpoint I wasn’t fan of the round ring on the neck strap (but that’s probably me being picky)
Store owner replied:
Hi Andrew, Thanks for your 4 star review. I'll contact you about the images as the image of the white apron is as per the image on our website. The reason the pocket opening is slanted is that it is designed for ergonomic reasons, but we understand that every wearer has their personal preferences. Hope you are enjoying the comfort and fit of the apron. Thanks again.
Store owner replied:
Thank you Philipp! What a lovely review you have given, we appreciate it and glad that you are happy with the "insane quality" Thank you again.
Store owner replied:
Thank you Peter, so good to know your chef apparel ticks all the boxes. Thank you!!!! and enjoy.
Very happy with my apron love the fabric & tanks for the great customer service when I had to exchange as I mistakenly ordered the wrong size
Thanks Janet
