Organic produce is 53% more expensive than conventional, a study finds. Tariffs might shrink that gap
We import less than 5% of the organic stuff, compared to more than a third of the conventional kind.

If you stick to the organic offerings in your supermarket fruit and vegetable section, you’re going to pay a premium: Organic produce costs 53% more than conventional, according to a new analysis from LendingTree.
With tariff threats come uncertainty, and Matt Schulz, chief consumer finance analyst with LendingTree, said just the fear of higher grocery prices might make organic food less popular.
“Spending an extra 50% on lettuce or carrots or something like that may just be a bridge too far for a lot of people,” he said.
Tariffs could actually shrink the price gap, per Ricky Volpe, who teaches agribusiness at Cal Poly. That’s because the U.S. imports less than 5% of its organic produce, but imports more than a third of its conventional vegetables and more than half of its conventional fruit.
Therefore, “the direct effect of the tariffs on organic produce prices in the U.S. should be lower than the direct effect that they'll have on conventional produce prices,” said Volpe.
He added that since the shelf life of food is so short, tariffs are likely to hit food prices first — as soon as one to two months from now.