Excitement is fast mounting as the Australian Organic industry prepares to honour the year’s highest achievers at upcoming gala event – The 2019 Australian Organic Industry Awards. Now in its sixth year, the awards will be held in Melbourne at event space The Tallows, Kensington, on Friday, November 15.

Hosted by peak industry body Australian Organic Ltd, the awards will celebrate the outstanding and innovative contributions members of the organic industry have made over the past year, showcasing leading products, businesses and individuals.

“Each year we celebrate the immense contribution certified organic operators give to the organic industry,” said Australian Organic CEO Niki Ford. “These awards are the pinnacle of our yearly celebrations and are a great opportunity to acknowledge the diverse industry at a special event.”

This year’s judging panel report that entrants exceeded expectations once again saying, “With so many innovative new products, successful business stories and extraordinary individuals this year’s finalists are a true credit to our industry which has quickly become one of the most dynamic markets in Australia.”

The Australian Organic Market Report 2019 revealed local demand for certified organic products is skyrocketing with $1.93 billion dollars generated in domestic sales for 2018 across a wide range of products. The figure is up $256 million from domestic sales of $1.67 billion for 2017 with the total Australian organic industry now worth $2.6 billion and growing year on year.

It also found 65 per cent of Australian households are now buying some sort of organic product or produce yearly – an annual rise of five per cent. Vegetables, beef, non-alcoholic beverages, fruit, ready to eat foods, nuts and cosmetics/health products are the most in demand items. Demand from overseas countries for Australian organic exports is also continuing to forge ahead with the amount of total export tonnage for 2018 having grown by 13 per cent since 2017. Over the last year, 30,155 tonnes of organic produce and products were exported to 61 different countries.

This year Australian Organic received a huge amount of high-quality entries for the 2019 awards. The finalists are as follows:

Certified Organic Food Product of the Year

• Activated Nutrients – Activated Nutrients Grow Up Multivitamin; Melbourne, VIC
• Arcadian Organic & Natural Meat Co. – Cleaver’s Organic Beef Lasagne; Toowoomba, QLD
• Australian Organic Food Co – Australian Organic Food Co Fruit Puree – Apple and Watermelon; Braeside, VIC

Certified Organic Non-Food Product of the Year

• Ahria International Pty Ltd – Ahria Organics Baby Top to Toe Cream; St Ives, NSW
• Aus Organic Feeds – Aus Organic Feeds Retail Range of Certified Organic Chicken Feeds; Greenmount, QLD
• TOM Organic Regular Tampon; St Kilda, VIC

Certified Organic Alcohol Product of the Year

• Angove Family Winemakers – Angove Organic Shiraz Cabernet; Magill, SA
• Gemtree Wines, The 2019 Luna Temprana Tempranillo by Gemtree Wines; McLaren Flat, SA
• Soulfresh Global Pty Ltd – Bootleg Booch Alcoholic Kombucha – Passionfruit; Laverton North, VIC

Certified Organic Non-Alcohol Product of the Year

• The Bean Alliance, Bean Ground and Drunk Coffee; Reservoir, VIC
• Schulz Organic Dairy, Schulz Organic Dairy Milk in Glass – 1L, returnable & refillable; Timboon, VIC
• Teelixir Pty Ltd – Mushroom Cacao Latte Starring Reishi and Rose; Woori Yallock, VIC

Certified Organic Cosmetic Product of the Year

• Aika Wellness – Aika Wellness – The Pitta Pure Polish; Bentleigh, VIC
• Ahria International Pty Ltd – Ahria Organics Herbal Essences Cream; St Ives, NSW
• Clemence Organics Pty Ltd – Clemence Organics Repair Face Serum; Blackheath, NSW

Best New Organic Certified Product

• Arcadian Organic & Natural Meat Co. – Cleaver’s Organic Beef Lasagne; Toowoomba, QLD
• Teelixir Pty Ltd – Mushroom Cacao Latte Starring Reishi and Rose; Woori Yallock, VIC
• TOM Organic Pty Ltd – TOM Organic Applicator Tampons; St Kilda, VIC

Best Organic Industry Innovator

• Australian Organic Food Co; Braeside, VIC
• Schulz Organic Dairy; Timboon, VIC
• TOM Organic Pty Ltd; St Kilda, VIC

Best Organic Influencer/Educator

• Aimee Marks – TOM Organic; St Kilda, VIC
• Marg Will – Organic Systems and Solutions Pty Ltd ; Brisbane, QLD
• Sarah and Scott Butler – Organic Angels; Torquay, VIC

Young Organic Leader

• Aimee Marks – TOM Organic; St Kilda, VIC
• Simon Schulz – Schulz Organic Dairy; Timboon, VIC
• Zac Gelman – CUB (Pure Blonde); Southbank, VIC

Export Market Leader

• Angove Family Winemakers; Magill, SA
• Arcadian Organic & Natural Meat Co.; Toowoomba, QLD
• Marinova Pty Ltd; Cambridge, TAS

Retailer of the Year

• Eco-Farms Wholefood & Organic Market; Rydalmere, NSW
• Organic Angels; Torquay, VIC

Farmer of the Year

• Bloss Hickson – Bush Beef Pty Ltd; Rolleston, QLD
• Iain Scholes – Arcadian Organic & Natural Meat Co.; Blackall, QLD
• Petar Pirovic – Pirovic Family Farms; Llandilo, NSW

Business of the Year

• Angove Family Winemakers; Magill, SA
• Arcadian Organic & Natural Meat Co.; Toowoomba, QLD
• TOM Organic; St Kilda, VIC