Agricultural Exports to the European Union: Opportunities and Challenges
International Agricultural Trade Report
Summary
The European Union (EU) is the world’s largest import market for agricultural commodities and food. From calendar year 2000 to 2012, EU agricultural imports increased by an estimated 145 percent, from $53.3 billion to more than $131 billion. However, U.S. agricultural exports to the
EU have vastly underperformed compared to the overall growth in U.S. agricultural exports to the world. Since 2000, global U.S. agricultural exports have increased 176 percent while exports to the EU have increased only 54 percent. Though U.S. exports to the EU rebounded in 2012 to
$10.1 billion, they remain below the record level achieved in 1980. The ability of U.S. agricultural and food exporters to penetrate this growing market is constrained by tariff and nontariff trade barriers in combination with increased global competition.
U.S. Exporters Lose Market Share as EU Market Grows and Competition Intensifies
As EU agricultural imports have grown, U.S. market share has steadily declined to just 7 percent – half of the level achieved in 2000. While they were once the top market for U.S. agricultural exports, the 27 current EU members now rank as the fifth-largest market for U.S. agricultural exports. At $10.1 billion in 2012, U.S. agricultural exports to the EU were $3.4 billion less than exports to Japan, our fourth-largest market, and nearly $16 billion less than exports to China, our top market. The 2012 total of $10.1 billion is also considerably less than the record $13 billion to these same 27 countries achieved in 1980. When adjusted for inflation, the value of trade in 1980 was more than $36 billion in 2012 dollars, further illustrating the significance of the drop-off in trade.
