EU beer exports to countries outside the Union decreased by 11% in 2025

The exports of alcoholic beer from the European Union to countries outside the EU decreased by 11% in 2025, to 3.2 billion liters, while imports from outside the Union increased by 6%, to approximately 500 million liters.

In short, EU countries exported 3.2 billion liters of alcoholic beer to countries outside the Union in 2025, which is 11% less than in the previous year. Imports of alcoholic beer from outside the EU moved in the opposite direction and increased by 6%, reaching approximately 0.5 billion liters. Belgium was the largest beer exporter among member states, with 1.5 billion liters sold both to other EU states and to markets outside the Union. The Netherlands exported 1.4 billion liters, Germany 1.3 billion, and the Czech Republic and Ireland about 0.6 billion liters each. France was the largest importer of alcoholic beer from the EU, with approximately 0.9 billion liters, followed by Italy, Germany, and Spain.

The European Union remained an important net exporter of alcoholic beer in 2025, even though the volume sold in markets outside the EU decreased significantly compared to the previous year.

The 27 member states exported together 3.2 billion liters to countries outside the Union. The volume was 11% lower than in 2024.

Imports moved in the opposite direction. Member states purchased approximately 0.5 billion liters of alcoholic beer from outside the EU, which is 6% more than in the previous year.

The difference between the two flows shows that the EU continued to export a volume more than six times greater than that imported. The data provided by Eurostat is expressed in liters and does not allow for the establishment of the trade value of exports or the evolution of the average price of marketed beer.

The 11% decrease refers exclusively to exports to countries outside the Union. It does not mean that the total beer exports of member states decreased by the same proportion, as a significant part of the trade takes place between EU countries.

The ranking of exporting countries presented by Eurostat includes both intra-EU trade and exports to third countries. On this basis, Belgium was the largest beer exporter in the Union in 2025.

Belgian companies exported approximately 1.5 billion liters to other member states and to countries outside the EU. The volume represents the total Belgian beer exports and should not be confused with the EU exports of 3.2 billion liters to external markets.

The Netherlands ranked second, with approximately 1.4 billion liters exported, and Germany in third place, with 1.3 billion.

The Czech Republic and Ireland each exported approximately 0.6 billion liters. The five countries form the group of the main European exporters by volume traded in 2025.

Belgium's position reflects the size of its production sector and its orientation towards external markets; however, the Eurostat data published in this material does not separate for each state the quantity sent within the EU from that exported to third countries.

The statistics also do not allow for a direct comparison of the economic value of exports. One liter of beer can have very different prices depending on category, brand, packaging, and destination, so the ranking by volume does not automatically represent the ranking by revenue.

On the import side, France purchased the largest volume of alcoholic beer among member states in 2025, approximately 0.9 billion liters.

Italy occupied the next position, with over 0.7 billion liters. Germany and Spain each imported approximately 0.6 billion, and the Netherlands about 0.3 billion.

These figures also include the total imports of the respective states, regardless of whether the beer comes from another member state or from a country outside the EU. For this reason, the sum of imports from the main countries far exceeds the 0.5 billion liters imported by the Union from third countries.

Germany appears among both the largest exporters and the main importers. In 2025, the country exported approximately 1.3 billion liters and imported approximately 0.6 billion.

The Netherlands had a similar situation, with 1.4 billion liters exported and approximately 0.3 billion imported. The volumes reflect both consumption and national production, as well as the integration of the European market, in which beer can be traded in large quantities between member states.

The published data do not indicate the countries outside the EU that purchased the 3.2 billion liters of European beer, nor the main countries from which the 0.5 billion liters imported originated.

The material does not provide any explanation for the 11% decrease in exports. The statistical data confirm the volume trend but do not allow for attributing the decrease to factors such as external demand, exchange rates, changing consumer preferences, or cost developments.

It is also not indicated the evolution of total beer production in the EU. A decrease in exports to third countries does not necessarily demonstrate a decrease in production or consumption within the Union.

The comparison between extra-EU exports and imports indicates, however, the maintenance of a very large surplus in quantitative terms. For every liter imported from outside the Union, member states exported over six liters abroad.

Trade within the single market remains separate from this report. Beer produced in Belgium and sold in France, for example, is recorded in Belgium's exports and France's imports, but does not form part of extra-EU trade.

This difference explains why Belgium can have total exports of 1.5 billion liters, while France has total imports of 0.9 billion, without these volumes being directly comparable to the 3.2 billion liters exported by the EU to the rest of the world.

The statistics were published by Eurostat on August 7, on the occasion of International Beer Day, celebrated annually on the first Friday of August.

Extra-EU trade includes exchanges between the 27 member states considered together and countries outside the Union. Transactions between two member states are excluded from this category and are considered intra-EU trade.

The Eurostat data used for the ranking of the main exporters and importers covers, however, the total exchanges of each state, both within the single market and with third countries. This difference must be maintained when comparing national volumes with the total trade of the EU.