Bulgaria's economy.bg reported on September 9 that according to the latest research report, in 2020, the EU's leading position in the world's largest food exporter will rise again. In terms of imports, the EU has become the third largest importer after the United States and China.
2020 is a challenging but successful year for EU food trade, with a total trade volume of 306 billion euros, including 184 billion euros for exports and 122 billion euros for imports. Compared with 2019, these two indicators achieved weak growth of 1.4% and 0.5% respectively. International trade has played a key role in mitigating the devastating economic impact of the epidemic and has proven to be a key tool for improving sustainability.
EU export products cover all links of the value chain, which shows the competitiveness of the EU food sector in different product categories from basic commodities to deeply processed food. The products with the largest export volume include wine, pasta and chocolate. In terms of product categories, the export of pork and wheat has made a significant contribution to the growth of the total export of EU food industry products. China, Switzerland, the Middle East and North Africa are the main countries affecting the growth of EU food exports in 2020. EU exports to the United States, Turkey, Singapore and Japan fell the most.
In terms of EU imports, basic agricultural food and feed products are obviously dominant, accounting for about 75% of the total imports. The increase in EU food imports was mainly due to the increase in imports of oilseeds, fatty acids and wax preparations, palm oil, fruits and soybean seeds. The proportion of imports from Canada increased significantly. Meanwhile, EU imports from Britain, Ukraine and the United States fell the most. Britain accounts for 23% of total exports and 13% of total imports. It is the most important food trading partner of the EU in 2020.
Source: Economic and Commercial Department of the Embassy in the Republic of Bulgaria
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