Norwegian dairy cooperative Tine has gone from having 90 per cent of the market for organic milk in 2010 to under 25 per cent in 2025.
Sales have more than halved in ten years, down 61 per cent, writes rural newspaper Nationen.
Rørosmeieriet has taken over the market and now has over 75 per cent market share. Tine points in its explanation to Coop’s cheap sale of Änglamark milk, the loss of the Armed Forces as a major customer after the requirement for organic purchases disappeared, as well as changed consumer habits and a «naturalness trend».
The dairy also mentions price as an important factor.
– The sale of organic sweet milk has developed over time, and price is an important factor for many consumers, says Annicka Vogt-Svendsen in Tine.
Does not mention methane inhibitors
Neither Tine nor Nationen mentions the Bovaer scandal, which shook Tine throughout the autumn of 2025 and spring of 2026. The dairy group carried out testing of methane inhibitors on 70 farms, with the goal of introducing the substance into all Norwegian milk production from 2027. After reports from Denmark about sick and dead cows, use was put on pause on 12 November 2025.
Shortly afterwards Document revealed that Tine had delivered Bovaer milk from NMBU straight into the tank, in contradiction to what management had publicly stated.
The scandal triggered massive consumer reactions and a Facebook group against methane inhibitors with over 50,000 members. In February 2026 the Storting scrapped the requirement for Bovaer from 2027, and Tine subsequently had to end all use.
– We are obliged to protect the trust that Norwegian milk enjoys, said communications director Sindre Ånonsen in Tine when the decision was made.
Tine has at the same time sharply reduced its organic range. Selbu Blå Økologisk was taken out in 2013, Norvegia Økologisk in 2024, and organic butter also disappeared in 2024. Today Tine has only one organic cheese in its range, Dovre Norsk Brie Økologisk.
The processing of organic milk has gone from nine dairies in 2015 to three today.