Browse Data and Analysis

Germany is a member of the European Union (EU) and generally follows EU directives and regulations, including those relating to the importation of food products.

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.

In 2024, Israel's technologically advanced, market-oriented economy achieved an annual GDP of $541.8 billion, with a modest growth of 0.9 percent. The food retail industry saw significant activity, with sales reaching $21 billion in 2024 and a projected growth of 5 percent in 2025.

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.

Continuing economic growth; increasing tourism; a healthy hotel, restaurant, and institutional sector; and a growing population will lead the UAE’s wheat and rice consumption to grow in the 2025-2026 marketing year (MY).

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.

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.

Production for Jamaica sugar is projected to fall to 33,000 metric tons (MT) for marketing year (MY) October 2025 to September 2026, consistent with the ongoing downward trend observed in the industry.

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.

FAS/Cairo (Post) forecasts Egypt’s soybean imports in marketing year (MY) 2025/26 (October – September) to increase by 5.0 percent from the previous marketing driven by a flexible exchange rate, the availability of forex and a more positive outlook for the livestock sectors.