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Andalusia accumulates 3,523 million euros in agri-food exports in the first quarter of the year

May 23, 2021
Andalusia accumulates 3,523 million euros in agri-food exports in the first quarter of the year

Andalusia’s agri-food exports reached 3,523 million euros in the first quarter of 2021, its second-best historical record for a January-March period since comparable data has been available (1995), thanks to year-on-year growth of 2.9%. At the same time, the agri-food bill for these three months has managed to contribute 2,460 million euros of positive foreign trade to the regional economy, with China as the country with the highest growth of its top ten markets, up 39%. 

According to Extenda data, the growth of Andalusian food and beverage sales abroad was even greater in March, when they rose by 10% year-on-year to 1,405 million, the best figure ever for this month.

In the first quarter of 2021, the region continues to lead exports of agri-food and beverages from Spain (24.2%) of total national sales (14,567 million), almost five points ahead of Catalonia (19.8%) and nine points ahead of the Valencian Community (15%).

By products, in the first quarter of 2021, sales of vegetables, fruit and olive oil continue to lead. At the beginning of the year, the recovery of olive oil sales in international markets stands out, growing by more than 25% compared to the first quarter of 2020, driven by the increase in demand from its three main destination countries: Italy, with an increase of 65% compared to January-March of the previous year, the United States, with an increase of 50%, and Portugal, which grew by 23.3%. Sales of meat and live plants also grew notably.

Europe is the main destination for the Andalusian agri-food sector, in whose main markets exports continued to increase in the first quarter, in addition to a notable increase in sales in Asian destinations, with China as the fastest-growing market of the top ten in this period (+39%); and Africa and America, where market share is gaining in countries that are among the top 20, such as Canada (+28.6%); Morocco (+27.4%); and the United States (+16.6%).