A well-organized and unified sector with a successful unified certification scheme characterizes Swedish organic development since 1985, when the Ecological Farmers Association, the certification body KRAV, and organic farmers’ marketing cooperatives were established. Other early stakeholders were the Biodynamic Organization and Saltå Mill. Organic producers in the early stage had to develop their own marketing structures, but during the 1990s most of them merged into the mainstream cooperatives. The market strategy from 1985 was to organize organic sales in mainstream markets, and market development was mainly taken care of by the retail chains, with the Consumers Cooperative (COOP) and the largest dairy, Arla, in the lead. The organic market today accounts for 3% of the total market. Imports constitute 1520% of the organic market; exports are less. A common label for organic is a major success factor for development; the KRAV label is known by 96% of the population. The first standards were developed by farmers, but after 1985, standard development was extended to the growing number of stakeholders in KRAV. Since EU membership in 1995, standard development in KRAV is to a large extent a question of interpretation of and adaptation to EU regulation 2092/91. However KRAV also set some higher standards and has standards for production areas that are not covered in the EU regulation. Government support for organic farming started in 1989 with conversion support to organic farmers, which continued under the frame of the EU environmental program after 1995. In 2005, 19% of the farmland was managed organically and received EU grants, and about 8% was certified by the dominant certifier KRAV. The main organic products are milk, grains, eggs, and beef. Organic development since 1995 has been conducted within the frame of national goals, and is characterized by a few organizations pushing and lobbying and extensive stakeholder cooperation in organized forums. (Author: Inger Källander)

Further Reading on Sweden's Organic Sector Development:

Case Study Overview
Organic Agricultural Conditions
Early Organic Agricultural Development
Organic Market Development
Regulatory Framework and Policy
Supporting Structures and Lessons Learned

^{_{(Adapted From IFOAM, Building Sustainable Organic Sectors)}}