EU greenhouse vegetable trade shifts from surplus to deficit

The European Union is experiencing a significant shift in its trade balance for greenhouse vegetables, moving from a structural surplus to a growing deficit. Between the periods of 2015–2017 and 2023–2025, EU imports of greenhouse vegetables from third countries rose by 60.1%, while exports declined by 12.9%.

Specific product trends show a sharp reversal. Tomato trade shifted from a surplus of 119,559 tonnes in 2015 to a projected deficit of 390,634 tonnes by 2025, driven by a 65.9% increase in imports and a 29.9% drop in exports. Bell peppers followed a similar path, moving from a surplus in 2015 to a deficit of 51,816 tonnes by 2025. Zucchini also transitioned to a deficit by 2025.

Cucumbers and eggplants are the only two products maintaining a trade surplus, though both have seen their surpluses diminish. Overall, the combined balance for these five products reversed in 2021, swinging from a 423,130-tonne surplus in 2015 to a 277,940-tonne deficit by 2025.