Spanish agri-food exports reached record figure in 2022

Against the current backdrop characterized by high international commodity prices, Spanish exports increased by 23.6% with respect to 2021.

The trade balance (exports minus imports) of the total economy decreased by 116.7% with respect to 2021, and that of the agri-food and fisheries sector decreased by 26%, and stood at 13,869 million euros, driven by the significant increase in the value of imports.

With regard to the main export sub-sectors in 2022:

• In terms of economic importance, the fruit group ranks first, with 9,845 million euros, followed by meat, with 9,708 million euros, and vegetables, with 8,029 million euros.
• The oils and fats group shows the largest increase in exports compared to 2021, with an increase of 33.1% and a total exported value of €7,194 million.
• The beverages group recorded an 8.6% increase in exports.

The destinations for agri-food and fishery exports in 2022:

• 64.1% of exports went to the European Union (EU-27), an increase of 15% compared to 2021.
• Exports to third countries (35.9% of the total) increased by 9.9%.

Meat

The meat group (Chapter 02 TARIC), has continued to see increases in export value since 2013 while maintaining relatively stable imports. This has meant that in the period analyzed, this group has experienced a striking growth in its balance, going from a positive balance of 2,725 M€ in 2013 to 7,861 M€ in 2022.

In general, exports of the "meat" group have increased by 9.8% in value in the last year compared to 2021, leaving the highest balance of the decade under study. Exports are 53.2% to the EU-27 and 46.8% to third countries. The leading subgroup in exports is pork, representing 70% of exports.

The report is available on the Ministry's webpage here.