Organic September kicks off with campaign on UK’s biggest billboard

The Soil Association launched Organic September with a bang by taking over the UK’s largest billboard.

The month-long campaign kicked off yesterday and saw the Soil Association taking over The Manchester Screen, the UK’s largest billboard, to put organic messaging where people can’t miss it.

In its social media post, the Soil Association said: “Because organic isn’t just a label. It’s a different way of farming, producing food and shopping with nature at the heart of it. Organic deserves to be seen. So we’re making it impossible to miss.”

Food brand teams up with independent retailer for Organic September

Mr Organic has announced a takeover with independent retailer, Better Food, as part of its Organic September celebrations.

To celebrate month-long campaign, the organic brand has partnered with Bristol-based Better Food, to do a takeover in all four of its stores. Mr Organic has also brought Bristol-based chef and influencer, Elly Pear (pictured) on board to create a dish that will be featured on the menu using Mr Organic products. The chef, who used to run a café in Bristol for eight years, has created her twist on a puttanesca, and Better Food will feature her chickpea ‘Puttanesca’ style salad in all its cafes. This salad contains Mr Organic’s Chopped Tomatoes, Red Lentil Rice, and their Chickpeas and Cannellini Beans in jars.

The Italian organic brand is looking to encourage customers to ‘Grab Some Organic’ this Organic September by reconnecting customers with organic food, sharing inspirational recipes, and their farm story.

The partnership with Better Food aligns perfectly, since the retailer’s founder, Phil Haughton, shares the same strong passion for sustainable, organic food. When Haughton was just 14 years old, his mother gifted him a Soil Association subscription. He started farming organically in a community in Scotland in 1974 before working on a City Farm in Bristol in 1981. Haughton started his own organic veg box scheme called Phil’s Better Food Campaign in 1992 and in 2002, opened the first Better Food brick-and-mortar store as a one-stop organic shop.

Valerio Simonetti, Mr Organic founder and third-generation tomato producer, commented: “We are proud to partner with Better Food this Organic September. With both of us sharing the same vision for wanting to make healthy, organic food accessible, we look forward to making a collective impact for Organic September. We hope that everyone who visits the cafes enjoy the special recipe that Elly Pear has created using Mr Organic’s products and will be inspired to make the switch to organic food that is better for our bodies and better for the planet.”

Data revealing Scottish organic land in growth described as encouraging

A new report revealing organic land area in Scotland has grown 28 per cent since last year has been described by Government as encouraging evidence of the growing confidence in organic farming.

Minister for Agriculture, Jim Fairlie, was commenting on publication of the Organic Farming In Scotland 2025 report, which has shown that in Scotland, the total organic land area (in-conversion and fully organic) was 168,200 hectares, a 28 per cent increase compared with 2024, and a 62 per cent increase compared with 2021.

Fairlie commented: “These new statistics show that the amount of land being farmed as organic in Scotland has seen a 62 per cent increase since 2021. This represents 3.3 per cent of Scotland’s total agricultural area. This is encouraging evidence of the growing confidence in organic farming across Scotland, and we are seeing strong progress in a sector that delivers benefits for our environment, biodiversity, animal welfare, and rural economy.

“Particularly significant is the sharp rise in land entering conversion, around double the area compared with 2024. This demonstrates that more farmers and crofters are recognising the opportunities organic production can offer and are investing in a sustainable future for their businesses. Scotland has a strong reputation for producing high-quality food and drink, and our organic sector plays an important role in strengthening that reputation at home and abroad. These figures highlight the commitment of Scotland’s producers to meeting growing consumer demand while supporting our wider climate and nature ambitions.”

The statistics covers organic land area, land use, livestock and operators in Scotland. The results are produced from data compiled by approved organic certification bodies and provides an overview of the results of the organic farming data for Scotland based on data compiled by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).