Wine still leads the way for EU alcohol exports
Last year, countries within the European Union exported €29.8 billion worth of alcoholic drinks to non-EU countries, with wine constituting the lion’s share, according to data released by the European Commission.
Wine made up the majority of the export value, constituting a 56.2% share (equal to around €16.8bn), followed by spirits/liqueurs with 29.7% (€8.9bn) and beer at 11.5% (€3.4bn).
The overall figure €29.8bn was more than 10% above the pre-pandemic level, with 2019’s figure at €26.9bn.
However, 2024 was a year-on-year drop compared to 2023’s figure of €30bn.
The breakdown of 2023’s data, €17.1bn for wine, €9.1bn for spirits/liqueurs and €3.5bn for beer, demonstrates that exports of each major beverage category lost value between 2023 and 2024. But, exports of EU-produced cider, perry, mead and sake (grouped as one category) actually rose from €472.5 million in value in 2023 to €495.9m in 2024. Likewise, the value of vermouth exports increased by €18.5m, reaching €284.3m.
The French Connection
The biggest exporter, responsible for a massive 40.6%, or €12.1bn, of the total export value was France – two-thirds (66.7%) of this figure was from wine sales, with most of the remainder (31.8%) being spirits/liqueurs.
Italy was in second, with 20.2% – the Apennine Peninsula’s booze sales were even more dependent on wine, with the grape-based beverage constituting 81.1% of its drinks exports in 2024, a figure equal to around €4.9bn.
In third was Spain (8.3%), while the Netherlands sat in fourth (7.6%). However, while wine was by far the most valuable category for most of the top exporters, for the Dutch it was beer, with the country which gave the world Heineken exporting €1.3bn-worth of it to non-EU nations in 2024.
Destinations
The US was firmly in first position, taking up almost a third (29.8%, €8.9bn) of EU beverage exports to non-EU countries in 2024 – the majority of this figure, some €4.9bn, was due to wine sales.
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In second place is the UK, which had a 16.5% share (€4.9bn), a staggering 68% of which (€3.3bn) was made up of wine.
China was the third most valuable market for EU-produced booze, buying up a 5.3% share, while Canada was close in fourth with 5.2%. Behind them was Switzerland (4.7%).
Of the top five extra-EU markets for alcoholic beverages, it was only in China that wine was not the most valuable category – in the People’s Republic, EU-produced spirits (45%, €0.7bn) trumped wine (34%, €0.5bn).
This figure is especially surprising given that Beijing’s tariffs on European spirits as part of its “anti-dumping measures” caused a 9.6% decline in the volume of Cognac exports to China, according to data from the Bureau National Interprofessionnel du Cognac.
Of course, China isn’t the only troublesome market for EU-based drinks brands. US President Donald Trump’s tariff war with Europe has seen the alcohol sector caught in the crossfire, even though his earlier threat of a 200% levy on EU-produced wines and spirits was not introduced.
Good news or bad news?
Ignacio Sánchez Recarte, secretary general of the Comité Européen des Entreprises Vins (CEEV), which represents wine producers in the EU, told the drinks business that the decline in export value was a “bad sign”, even if the wine industry remains a “powerhouse”.
“The figures hide some extra concerns – at the end of 2024, we boosted our exports to US to stockpile wine in case Trump won the election (which he did) and set new tariffs on wine (which he also did),” said Recarte. “Little could be done [by the CEEV] in the case of the US situation, beyond supporting the EU in its intention to negotiate a solution.”
However, there is the prospect of new markets for EU wine on the horizon.
“More generally,” Recarte continued, “in addition of trying to tackle any technical barrier which any third country may impose on our wines, we continue to support the European Commission in its strategy to open new markets, such as ratification of EU-Mercosur [South American trade bloc] deal and the negotiation of EU-India agreement.”
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