Browse Data and Analysis

The Ministry of Trade temporarily banned lemon exports as of April 8, 2025, due to a predicted supply shortage following cold weather and frost damage in the southeast.

The European Parliament took an initial step to open market access for beet and oilseed planting seeds from Ukraine. The EU approved cereal planting seeds from Ukraine in 2020.

Spain is one of the world’s largest markets for fish and seafood. In 2024, it was the fourth largest importer of fish and seafood in the world - after much larger countries like the United States, China, and Japan.

The Marketing Year (MY) 2025/26 sugar beet area and production figures are forecast to remain the same as last year. Centrifugal sugar production remains the same year-on-year at 3.1 million metric tons, assuming favorable weather conditions.

On March 14, 2025, the Ministry of Trade and Integration announced the second stage of 2025 meat and poultry quotas by HS code for historic suppliers (i.e., importers).

Unfavorable weather conditions in autumn 2024 resulted in decreased winter wheat area. Functioning maritime logistics in MY2023/24 and the first half of MY2024/25 kept shipping rates stable and have allowed Ukraine to quicky and cost efficiently export large volumes of commodities to distant markets.

A larger than average crop this year caused Kazakhstan to introduce export subsidies for shipping wheat to Europe and other Central Asian countries effective through September 1, 2025.

In the United Kingdom (UK) regulatory changes affecting high-sugar soft drinks and food and drink products high in fat, sugar, and salt food (HFSS) come into effect in April and October 2025.

Serbia’s overall grain production in MY 2024/25 had mixed results as its winter crops (wheat and barley) experienced bumper crops while corn, soybean and sunflower declined for the third year in a row.

Difficult growing conditions and a contracting domestic industry continue to pressure Greek cotton farmers and further its reliance on government subsidies for survival. Greece’s MY 2025/26 cotton production is forecast at 1.02 million bales, down 5.5 percent from the previous season due to lower planting.

The UK government is committed to signing a new Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement with the EU to ease post-Brexit trading frictions, but depending on the type of deal agreed, it may impact the UK’s ability to negotiate future Free Trade Agreements.

Bulgaria’s fish and seafood imports have grown steadily over the past decade, nearly doubling in value over this period. Bulgarian importers are seeking to expand the variety of fish available to consumers, particularly in the mid and high-value categories.