In a recent report published by the European Commission, agri-food trade was analyzed for 2020, a year that brought many challenges, especially in the form of COVID-19. Despite the challenges, the report highlights the success that European agri-food trade experienced in 2020, where the total value of agri-food trade reached €306 billion. Of that total, €184 billion were exports and €122 billion were imports.
Despite a general downward trend for international trade in Europe in 2020, mostly caused by the pandemic, the EU international trade in agri-food reported slight growth compared to 2019. The value of EU agri-food exports saw a 1.4% increase and the value for imports rose 0.5%.
Regarding the nut and dried fruit industry, the category of Tropical fruit, fresh or dried, nuts and spices, continued to have the largest share of EU agri-food imports as it was in 2019, representing 11% of all agri-food imports into the EU. The category Fruit, fresh or dried, excluding citrus & tropical fruits, represented 5% of all agri-food imports, making it tied for the second-largest group of imports.
When discussing trade with some of the EU’s most prominent trade partners, the report shows that Tropical fruit fresh or dried, nuts and spices dominate the EU’s agri-food imports from the US with a 26% share. The value of tropical fruits and nuts imports also increased by €56 million, in part to increased volumes. Tropical fruits, fresh or dried, nuts, and spices also remain tied for the largest product category of EU imports from China, at a 9% share.