FoodDrinkEurope

🌍 EU food and drink trade bulletin: key highlights from Q2 2024 Steady export growth - trade surplus - mixed import trends 1. Steady export growth: EU food and drink exports reached €47.2bn (+3%), with strong gains in key markets like the US (+€571m) and the UK (+€131m). The top sectors driving growth were cocoa 🍫 oils 🏺 and sugar 🥣 2. Trade surplus expansion: The EU’s trade surplus climbed to €20.4bn (+3%), supported by robust performance in various food products (+€1.3bn), although beverages saw a decline of €657m. 3. Mixed import trends: overall imports rose to €26.8bn (+3%), with notable increases from Ukraine (+€484m) and Tunisia (+€202m). Growing imports included cocoa 🍫 and processed fruits 🥫 while sugar 🥣 and fish 🐟 imports declined. See the full bulletin here ⬇ https://lnkd.in/e3h76C_U

📊 Economic Bulletin - Q2 2024 - EU food and drink industry Steady growth in EU food and drink production, rising employment, climbing exports but mixed trends in agricultural commodity prices. ⚙ Steady production and turnover growth: The EU food and drink sector saw moderate gains in production (+0.7%) and turnover (+0.8%) compared to Q1 2024. Year-on-year production increased 2.5% despite a 3.3% decrease in overall manufacturing. 👷♀️ More jobs: Employment in the food and drink industry increased 1.9% year-on-year. This contrasts with stagnant employment levels across the broader manufacturing industry. 📈 Rising exports: EU food and drink exports rose to €47.2 billion, reaching a 3% increase from Q2 2023. The top exports - meat, dairy, processed fruits and vegetables, wine, and other foods - contributed to a trade surplus of €20.4 billion. 🍫 Declining commodity prices with key exceptions: Agricultural commodity prices mostly trended downward vs. Q2 2023, except for a sharp rise in cocoa (+194%), coffee (+24%), and rapeseed (+4%) - highlighting mixed pressures on food input costs. See the full bulletin here ⬇ https://lnkd.in/eEWtXTQi

Congratulations to Henrik Samuelson for being appointed as FoodDrinkEurope's new President! 🎉 Today at FoodDrinkEurope’s Board of Directors meeting Henrik Samuelson, SVP Customer Brands at Paulig Group, was appointed as our new President to an initial two-year term. Henrik takes over from Marco Settembri (formerly CEO Zone Europe at Nestlé) who served as FoodDrinkEurope’s President since 2020. Mr. Samuelson said he was honoured to be taking over the presidency and laid out his hopes for the organisation of the European food and drink industry in the coming years: “The European food and drink industry plays a crucial role in shaping the EU’s new mandate to drive competitiveness, sustainability, and security." "Together, we can work towards a resilient future that supports both our sector and the communities we serve. I look forward to working together and strengthening our partnerships with policymakers, farmers, traders, retailers, consumers and others to drive real lasting positive change in our food systems." "The first deliverable in which to achieve this will be the anticipated Vision on Agriculture and Food, which should serve as a crucial foundation for enhancing the competitiveness and resilience of our strategic sector.”

FoodDrinkEurope has joined 27 other trade association in endorsing the European Commission’s approach to cut administrative burden relief and simplify regulation over the next 5 years. In our joint statement today, we call on the Commission to focus in particular on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CS3D) as an essential priority and to this end, policymakers should take 3 key steps: 1. Immediately launch a comprehensive competitiveness assessment of CS3D to identify where simplification, clarification and burden reduction should be achieved within upcoming implementing legislation. 2. Adopt any guidelines or implementing legislation at least two years before compliance with the legislation becomes mandatory otherwise extend the transition period. 3. Make harmonisation and interoperability of rules key pillars in supporting Europe’s competitiveness and ensuring a well-functioning Single Market. See the full statement below ⬇ https://lnkd.in/egCHeaQZ

Ahead of the European Parliament hearings of the Commissioners-Designate of the European Commission, FoodDrinkEurope has written the below open letter to Commissioner-Designate Stéphane Séjourné ⬇

📈 Input costs for the food and drink industry show steady upwards pressure FoodDrinkEurope's latest Economic Bulletin on Input Costs highlights three pivotal trends in 2024 impacting the industry: 🚢 Escalating transport costs: While energy prices show a mix of trends, with crude oil down but gas prices up, global shipping costs have surged by 256% compared to last year, intensifying production challenges. 🌽 Volatile raw material costs: Packaging costs are relatively stable, but agricultural inputs like fertilizers have risen sharply, adding to pressures on farmers and suppliers. 🛒 Consumer prices hold steady: Consumer food prices rose by just 1.7% against broader inflation of 2.4%. See the full bulletin here ⬇ https://lnkd.in/ezE4pFZZ

Meet #TheFoodies finalists! 🏆 🍽️ 🌍 Former Foodies winner Hexagro is back! And this time they've brought AI to the urban garden. 🤖 🏡 With over 4,000 smart gardens sold and a community of urban growers, their AI-driven app is making sustainable gardening a breeze. By decentralising food production, they’re reducing carbon emissions and reconnecting urban communities with nature. - Next-Gen Innovation 💜 See all 15 finalists at thefoodies.eu - winners announced in December ⬇️ Felipe Hernández Villa-Roel

Meet #TheFoodies finalists! 🏆 🍽️ 🌍 Driving sustainability in the food sector! 🚀 Opteinics™ offers an easy-to-use life-cycle assessment tool, to help food and drink makers measure, understand, and act on their environmental impact - Next-Gen Innovation 💜 Food and drink brands are already successfully engaging suppliers with Opteinic's innovative multi value-chain-step and multi-user data to set baselines for sustainability targets and the management of Scope 3 emissions. See all 15 finalists at thefoodies.eu - winners announced in December ⬇️ Irene Rosique Conesa

Meet #TheFoodies finalists! 🏆 🍽️ 🌍 BettaFish 🐠 are transforming European seaweed into plant-based seafood, reducing the strain on our fisheries and offering a sustainable income for fishing communities. Their TU-NAH launch saved 154 tonnes of tuna! 🌊🍃 - for a Greener Planet and sustainability oceans 💚 See all 15 finalists at thefoodies.eu - winners announced in December ⬇️ Deniz Ficicioglu

Meet #TheFoodies finalists! 🏆 🍽️ 🌍 Treberei is making strides in sustainability! 🌾 They’ve saved 2 tons of spent grain by producing fiber and protein-rich pasta. Each pack comes with delicious sauce recipes, elevating mealtime while supporting a greener planet! A true example of Next-Gen Innovation 💜 See all 15 finalists at thefoodies.eu - winners announced in December ⬇️