EU beer exports to non-member countries fell 11% in 2025 as imports rose 6%

The European Union exported 3.2 billion litres of alcoholic beer to countries outside the bloc in 2025, 11% less than in 2024, while imports from third countries rose 6% to 500 million litres, according to Eurostat data reported by the Spanish trade publication Vinetur.

The gap between the two flows came to 2.7 billion litres in favour of exports, leaving outbound volumes 6.4 times larger than inbound ones. The bloc remains a large net seller of beer, but 2025 was a year in which the two flows moved in opposite directions.

What the Eurostat series measures

The statistics cover alcoholic beer only. Non-alcoholic beer falls outside the measurement and is not reflected in any of the volumes cited.

Eurostat ranks the flows by litres traded rather than by economic value. The figures therefore do not show which countries earn the most from beer, what the average price per litre is, or which markets have the largest production or consumption. A single member state can both import and export beer within the same year.

The data also separates two different things: EU trade with third countries, and a ranking of member states by volume. In the second ranking, national export figures combine sales inside and outside the Union, which means they cannot be compared directly with the 3.2 billion litres shipped beyond the bloc's borders.

Three countries dominate the sell side

Belgium led the member-state export ranking in 2025 with close to 1.5 billion litres of alcoholic beer. The Netherlands was second at about 1.4 billion and Germany third at 1.3 billion. Czechia and Ireland followed, each at around 600 million litres. The distance between Belgium and the Netherlands was roughly 100 million litres, the same as between the Netherlands and Germany.

The widest step came after third place: Germany sold more than twice as much abroad as either Czechia or Ireland. Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany together accounted for around 4.2 billion litres, and adding Czechia and Ireland brings the top five to about 5.4 billion. On those rounded figures, almost four out of every five litres counted among the five largest exporters came from just three countries.

France and Italy lead the buy side

France was the largest buyer of alcoholic beer in 2025 at around 900 million litres, followed by Italy at more than 700 million. Germany and Spain shared the next band with 600 million litres each, and the Netherlands closed the group at 300 million.

The gap between France and Italy was about 200 million litres, while France's lead over Germany and Spain was roughly 300 million. French volumes were three times those of the Netherlands. Together, the five largest importers accounted for around 3.1 billion litres, with France and Italy contributing 1.6 billion, slightly more than half of that total, and Germany and Spain a further 1.2 billion.

Two rankings that barely overlap

Germany and the Netherlands were the only member states appearing in both top-five lists. Germany ranked third in each, selling close to 1.3 billion litres abroad and buying about 600 million, a difference of roughly 700 million in favour of exports. The Netherlands showed a wider spread: second among exporters at 1.4 billion litres and fifth among importers at about 300 million, a difference of some 1.1 billion.

Spain ranked fourth among buyers, at practically the same level as Germany and about 100 million litres behind Italy, but did not enter the top five exporters. France and Italy are likewise absent from the five largest sellers despite occupying the top two import positions. Belgium, Czechia and Ireland appear among the leading exporters but not among the leading buyers.

Taken together, Vinetur notes, the Eurostat figures point to two separate movements in the market for alcoholic beer: the EU cut sales to non-member countries in 2025 while increasing purchases from them, and the member states that sell the most beer are not necessarily those that buy the most when total traded volume is measured. Because the series is built on litres rather than value, it does not identify the commercial reasons behind the 11% export decline.