In 2018, some 137,000 tonnes of honey were traded among the EU member states, with Hungary alone exporting nearly 20,000 tonnes to other members, amounting to about 14% of total intra-EU exports, according to the EU’s statistical agency Eurostat.
In terms of intra-EU exports, Hungary was followed by Belgium (19,000 tonnes), Spain (18,000 tonnes), Germany (16,000 tonnes), and Poland (15,000 tonnes).
In contrast, in 2018, only 21,000 tonnes of honey were exported by the EU member states to countries outside the EU. These exports were worth EUR 119 million. Hungary exported more than 1,300 tonnes to non-EU countries.
In the same year, EU member states imported 208,000 tonnes of natural honey from non-EU member states, worth EUR 452 million.
In 2018, 60,000 tonnes of honey were imported to Germany from non-EU member states (29% of total extra-EU imports of honey), making the country the largest EU importer of honey from non-EU countries, ahead of the U.K. (45,000 tonnes), followed by Belgium (22,000 tonnes), Poland (21,000 tonnes), and Spain (17,000 tonnes).
Compared to 2013, imports of honey from outside the EU increased in weight by 25%. However, the weight of EU exports of honey to non-member states grew by 40%.
The bulk of non-EU imported honey came from China (80,000 tonnes, amounting to 39% of extra-EU imports), followed by Ukraine (41,000 tonnes), Argentina (25,000 tonnes), Mexico (21,000 tonnes), and Chile (8,000 tonnes).
Source:BusinessJournal
