The West's only organic supermarket has hit out at a poll which suggests shoppers are turning their backs on organic products as they struggle to cope with the credit crunch.

The Better Food Company, of Bristol, which is about to celebrate its 10th anniversary, said the poll of 1,000 UK shoppers failed to give a true picture of the moves organic producers and suppliers were making to help improve the quality of food available.

The study, by MORI, said the economic conditions were forcing consumers to reject organic products, although it found shoppers were continuing to buy free-range and fair trade goods.

According to MORI, 31 per cent of shoppers thought buying organic was important, while 48 per cent did not care if a product was organic.

And 64 per cent of consumers thought organic products were too expensive.

It also revealed disparities on green shopping issues, with 55 per cent saying it was important products were biodegradable but just 35 per cent had bought such products in the past six months.

In contrast, 62 per cent said they supported free-range products with 61 per cent reporting they had bought the products in the past six months.

Half said they thought fair trade was important, with 49 per cent buying the products.

MORI's Susanne Goller said: "Organic products stand for a number of things from better taste to environmental issues and consumers appear uncertain as to what good they are contributing if they purchase the category.

"We believe one of the biggest challenges facing the organic category in order to maintain sales during the recession is to find a clearly defined benefit that consumers can associate with and that justifies the higher price points."

But Mel Taylor, general manager of the Better Food Company, said the store had bucked recent trends by increasing sales despite evidence shoppers were buying fewer products.

Ms Taylor said: "We have seen a change in customer spending, with customers choosing more value items and shopping more carefully and prudently.

"So, ironically, while people are buying fewer things, what they are buying is better quality goods they can stretch further or make last longer, so we have seen a rise in sales over the past two months.

"I think the organic industry will suffer like any other during this recession but I do not believe that it will be as bad as the MORI poll suggests."

"To gain organic certification, much higher standards of animal welfare are required than even the RSPCA freedom standard, widely regarded as an industry standard.

"It may be true consumers are spending less on organics in conventional supermarkets, yet independent retailers, farm shops and farmers' markets are still seeing a rise in sales, according to industry magazines.

"It's true consumers still see organic as pricey but the difference in price is lessening. Just last week, a pack of organic vine tomatoes in Somerfield was only 10p more expensive than the non-organic, same weight equivalent.

"Because of conventional farming's reliance on oil for fertiliser, pesticides, machinery and packing materials, we could soon see organic food becoming cheaper than non-organic."

The Better Food Company has launched a series of evening workshop events where staff will be on hand to show how to make produce go further.