The latest EU agri-food trade figures released recently show that the total value of EU agri-food trade reached €31.4 billion in April 2022, a 14% increase on to April 2021. Exports of agricultural products from the EU decreased by 5.4%, mainly due to lower exports to Russia (-26%) and China (-11%). Overall, trade flows from January to April 2022 are significantly higher than the corresponding period last year, with exports increasing by 10% and imports increasing by 28% due to high world prices.
Russian invasion
The report also focusses on the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for agri-business in April 2022. As a result, maize imports from Ukraine dropped dramatically in March and April (-35% over one year), as did those from Serbia (-77%). Maize imports from the US, Canada, Moldova and Brazil have partially compensated for this supply chain disruption. To Ukraine, there was a 93% increase from March, with particularly strong growth in exports of pork, poultry, flour and flakes. The growth in exports to sub-Saharan Africa concerns oilseeds (+83% in volume), cereals (+27%) and cereal preparations (+14%). Cereal preparations and milling products (+15%) and dairy products (+13%) also saw notable growth. Exports of pigmeat and horticulture, however, fell by 24% and 3%, respectively. This was due to the continued reduction in demand for pigmeat exports to China and lower demand for horticultural products in the UK and Russia.