European Organic Awards 2024

What are the European Organic Awards?

The yearly European Organic Awards, jointly organised in the European spirit by the European Commission, the European Economic and Social Committee, the European Committee of the Regions, IFOAM Organics Europe and COPA-COGECA, aim to recognise and honour European actors who play a significant role in enhancing, developing, and innovating the organic value chain.

To this end, the EU organic awards scheme comprises 7 categories and 8 prizes:  

• Best organic farmer (female and male)  
• Best organic city  
• Best organic region  
• Best organic bio-district  
• Best organic food processing SME  
• Best organic food retailer  
• Best organic restaurant/food service  

Who are this year’s winners?

The awards ceremony of the 3rd edition of the European Organic Awards took place on 23 September 2024, EU Organic Day. This year’s awardees truly show how the organic supply chain is creating innovative value chains and generating opportunities for rural areas! Here they are:

• Best organic farmer (female) to Ms Reinhilde Frech-Emmelmann in Austria, founder of ReinSaat GmbH in 1998 together with Demeter and organic farmers and gardeners in St. Leonhard am Hornerwald;
• Best organic farmer (male) to Mr Benny Schöpf in Germany, chief vegetable grower at Kartoffelkombinat, the largest community-supported  farm in Germany;
• Best organic region to South Savo in Finland, which managed to build a strong organic farming culture through 40 years of collaboration between farmers, researchers, and local authorities;
• Best organic city to BioStadt Bremen in Germany, encompassing over 30% of farms certified organic, and promoting sustainable food systems through community projects and innovative farming initiatives, empowering citizens to drive local change;
• Best organic bio-district to Sörmland Bio-district in Sweden, a pioneer in organic farming since the 1940s, bringing together farms, food processors, restaurants, Eco-hotel and an Eco-bank;
• Best organic food processing SME to Gino Girolomoni Cooperativa Agricola, in Italy, is a cooperative specialised in organic pasta production, continuing the mission of its founder, Gino Girolomoni;
• Best organic food retailer to SAiFRESC in Spain, founded by three farmers in 2011, it transitioned to organic farming, revitalising agriculture in the Huerta de Valencia;
• Best organic restaurant/food service to Kalf & Hansen in Sweden, founded in 2014 by Rune and Fabian Kalf-Hansen, this restaurant chain offers 100% organic, seasonal Nordic cuisine.

The ceremony was live-streamed on the EU Commission’s website and can be rewatched there. Videos of the single winners can be viewed on YouTube thanks to the dedicated playlist. Learn more about the winners on the dedicated page on the EU Commission’s website.

Check out the 2023 edition’s winners and watch the full recording of 2023 EU Organics awards ceremony. Check out also the 2022 edition’s winners. 

Why EU awards for organic food and farming?

Organic production as key player to increase biodiversity…

Organic food and farming have direct positive effects on our climate, the environment, biodiversity, and animal welfare. Any increase in organic production contributes to lower use of fertilizers, chemical pesticides, and antimicrobials. Therefore, it enhances biodiversity  and, at the same time, sustains the health of soils and plants, building ecological and sustainable cycles whilst reducing the environmental impacts and ensuring fairness regarding the common environment and life opportunities.

… and to implement the European Green Deal and its Strategies 

Organic production has also been identified as playing a key role in the achievement of the objectives of the European Green Deal, the Farm to Fork strategy and the Biodiversity strategy. For this reason, the Commission has defined a target of 25% of EU agricultural land under organic farming by 2030 and a significant increase in organic aquaculture. Moreover, to stimulate organic production and consumer demand for organic products the Commission has adopted the Action Plan for the Development of Organic Production in March 2021, aiming at increasing public awareness of the characteristics and benefits of organic production.   

To do so, the Action Plan calls for the launch of yearly awards recognising excellence in the EU’s organic value chain. These awards are intended to honour the best organic actors who have helped reduce the negative environmental effects of agriculture and advance EU biodiversity and farm-to-fork initiatives.  

How can I apply?

Applications for the EU Organic Awards 2024 are closed.

Applicants to the EU Organic Awards had to showcase their projects, proving they have been developing and implementing an excellent, innovative, sustainable, and reproducible initiative for organic production in the EU.  

More information about the awards, the categories, application procedure, and eligibility criteria, can be found on the European Commission’s website. 

If you still have questions or inquiries, please contact the organising partners of the award you plan to apply to:    

• Best organic farmer:
  • Female: [email protected]  
  • Male: [email protected]   
• Best organic city, region, or bio-district: [email protected] 
• Best organic SME, food retailer or restaurant: [email protected] 

Do not forget to subscribe to our newsletter, and follow us @OrganicsEurope on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram to stay tuned and remember to use #EUOrganic and #EUOrganicAwards to post about the organic awards on social media. 

Privacy Statement

When submitting your information to the EU Organic Awards, us and the other organising partners will have to collect and process some data. Read the privacy statement explaining why and how your personal data will be used in the context of the awards. This document is specifically intended for applicants in the Best Organic Farmer (female & male) category.   

This statement is available for each application category in the respective application forms.   

For our privacy policy and GDPR compliance, continue reading on www.organicseurope.bio/cookies-gdpr.