Chocolate Exporters by Country

July 21, 2019 by

Chocolate Exporters by Country

Demand sweetens for chocolate

Global sales from chocolate exports by country totaled US$28.6 billion in 2018. Overall the value of chocolate exports rose by an average 2.1% for all exporting countries since 2014 when chocolate shipments were valued at $28 billion. Year over year, the value of exported chocolate increased by 2.7% from 2017 to 2018.

Among continents, European countries exported the highest dollar worth of chocolate during 2018 with shipments amounting to $21.4 billion or three-quarters (74.9%) of overall international chocolate sales. This compares with 13% from North America, 8.2% from Asia, 1.6% from Latin America excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, 1.4% from African chocolate exporters, and 0.9% from suppliers in Oceania led by Australia.

The 4-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix is 1806 for chocolate and other food preparations containing cocoa.

Chocolate Exporters by Country

Countries

Below are the 15 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of chocolate during 2018.

  1. Germany: US$5 billion (17.3% of total chocolate exports)
  2. Belgium: $3.1 billion (10.7%)
  3. Italy: $2.1 billion (7.2%)
  4. Netherlands: $2 billion (7.2%)
  5. Poland: $1.7 billion (6.1%)
  6. United States: $1.7 billion (5.8%)
  7. Canada: $1.4 billion (5%)
  8. France: $1.4 billion (5%)
  9. United Kingdom: $963.7 million (3.4%)
  10. Switzerland: $863.6 million (3%)
  11. Russia: $632 million (2.2%)
  12. Mexico: $612.2 million (2.1%)
  13. Spain: $509.6 million (1.8%)
  14. Turkey: $504.5 million (1.8%)
  15. Austria: $421.1 million (1.5%)

By value, the listed 15 countries shipped about four-fifths (80.1%) of all chocolate exports in 2018.

Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing chocolate exporters since 2014 were: Italy (up 20.7%), Canada (up 20.2%), Poland (up 11.6%) and Netherlands (up 9%).

Those countries that posted declines in their exported chocolate sales were led by: Austria (down -21.5%), Turkey (down -12.5%), France (down -12.1%), Russia (down -2.9%) and Switzerland (down -0.7%).

Advantages

The following countries posted the highest positive net exports for chocolate during 2018. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the surplus between the value of each country’s chocolate exports and its import purchases for that same commodity.

  1. Germany: US$2.5 billion (net export surplus up 7.8% since 2014)
  2. Belgium: $2.2 billion (up 2.9%)
  3. Italy: $1.5 billion (up 35.6%)
  4. Poland: $894.8 million (down -1.6%)
  5. Netherlands: $704.2 million (down -8.6%)
  6. Switzerland: $605.2 million (up 0.6%)
  7. Canada: $420.6 million (up 61.2%)
  8. Turkey: $414.1 million (down -13.4%)
  9. Mexico: $323.4 million (up 161.9%)
  10. Singapore: $166.5 million (down -22.4%)
  11. Ivory Coast: $140.9 million (up 124.1%)
  12. Malaysia: $131.7 million (reversing a -$6.1 million deficit)
  13. Russia: $91.6 million (up 363.4%)
  14. Egypt: $70.1 million (down -17.4%)
  15. India: $65.2 million (reversing a -$14.5 million deficit)

German and Belgian exporters generate the highest surplus in the international trade of chocolate. In turn, this positive cashflow confirms both competitors’ strong competitive advantage for this specific product category.

Opportunities

The following countries posted the highest negative net exports for chocolate during 2018. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the deficit between the value of each country’s chocolate import purchases and its exports for that same commodity.

  1. United Kingdom: -US$1.2 billion (net export deficit down -8.8% since 2014)
  2. United States: -$1.1 billion (up 60.6%)
  3. France: -$806 million (up 79.8%)
  4. Japan: -$522.9 million (down -10.4%)
  5. Saudi Arabia: -$337 million (down -35.3%)
  6. United Arab Emirates: -$296.2 million (up 2081.6%)
  7. Australia: -$275.7 million (down -4.7%)
  8. South Korea: -$267 million (down -0.4%)
  9. Romania: -$229.4 million (up 42.9%)
  10. Portugal: -$204.4 million (up 5.2%)
  11. Hong Kong: -$197 million (down -20.2%)
  12. Spain: -$153.8 million (down -14%)
  13. Israel: -$146.4 million (up 29.6%)
  14. Kazakhstan: -$137.9 million (down -19.3%)
  15. Norway: -$132.2 million (down -22.2%)

International traders in the United Kingdom and United States and incurred the highest deficits for the international trade of chocolate. In turn, this negative cashflow highlights each’s strong competitive disadvantages for this specific product category but also signals opportunities for chocolate-supplying countries that help satisfy the powerful demand from UK and American consumers.

Companies

Chocolate Exporting Companies

Based on the Candy Industry’s 2015 Top 100 Confectionery Companies in the World, below are the world’s largest conglomerates that produce chocolate bars and other cocoa-containing food preparations. Show within parenthesis is the country where each colossus is headquartered.

  • Mars Inc (United States)
  • Mondelez International (United States)
  • Ferrero Group (Italy)
  • Nestle SA (Switzerland)
  • Meiji Co Ltd (Japan)
  • Hershey Foods Corp (United States)
  • Chocoladenfabriken Lindt & Sprüngli AG (Switzerland)
  • Arcor (Argentina)
  • Ezaki Glico Co Ltd (Japan)
  • August Storck KG (Germany)
  • United Confectionary Manufacturers (Russia)
  • Orion Corp (South Korea)
  • Yildiz Holding (Turkey)
  • Lotte Confectionery Co. Ltd (South Korea)
  • Crown Confectionery Co. Ltd (South Korea)
  • Cemoi (France)
  • Ferrara Candy Co (United States)


 

Searchable List of Chocolate Exporting Countries in 2018

You can change the presentation order by clicking the triangle icon at the top of any of the columns below.

RankExporterChocolate Exports (US$)%World Total
1.Germany$5 billion17.3%
2.Belgium$3.1 billion10.7%
3.Italy$2.1 billion7.2%
4.Netherlands$2 billion7.2%
5.Poland$1.7 billion6.1%
6.United States$1.7 billion5.8%
7.Canada$1.4 billion5%
8.France$1.4 billion5%
9.United Kingdom$963.7 million3.4%
10.Switzerland$863.6 million3%
11.Russia$632 million2.2%
12.Mexico$612.2 million2.1%
13.Spain$509.6 million1.8%
14.Turkey$504.5 million1.8%
15.Austria$421.1 million1.5%
16.Singapore$418.1 million1.5%
17.Sweden$366.6 million1.3%
18.Ireland$331.9 million1.2%
19.China$325.2 million1.1%
20.Czech Republic$290.6 million1%
21.Malaysia$284 million1%
22.Slovakia$246.6 million0.9%
23.Hong Kong$198.8 million0.7%
24.Australia$197.9 million0.7%
25.Hungary$182.2 million0.6%
26.Ukraine$171.4 million0.6%
27.Denmark$169 million0.6%
28.Bulgaria$161.1 million0.6%
29.Brazil$160.2 million0.6%
30.Croatia$158.4 million0.6%
31.Ivory Coast$146 million0.5%
32.India$140.2 million0.5%
33.Lithuania$134.7 million0.5%
34.Egypt$124.9 million0.4%
35.Argentina$112.1 million0.4%
36.Romania$96.4 million0.3%
37.Japan$84.9 million0.3%
38.South Africa$71.6 million0.3%
39.Finland$71.1 million0.2%
40.Serbia$68.1 million0.2%
41.Belarus$65.8 million0.2%
42.South Korea$62.2 million0.2%
43.Colombia$61.2 million0.2%
44.New Zealand$56 million0.2%
45.United Arab Emirates$50.9 million0.2%
46.Thailand$50.7 million0.2%
47.Lebanon$46.5 million0.2%
48.Indonesia$44.5 million0.2%
49.Ghana$44.1 million0.2%
50.Norway$43.9 million0.2%
51.Kazakhstan$39.9 million0.1%
52.Greece$39.9 million0.1%
53.Latvia$38.3 million0.1%
54.Ecuador$29.3 million0.1%
55.Portugal$26.6 million0.1%
56.Slovenia$24.8 million0.1%
57.Chile$22.8 million0.1%
58.Peru$22.6 million0.1%
59.Israel$19 million0.1%
60.Vietnam$16.4 million0.1%
61.Armenia$16.1 million0.1%
62.Estonia$15.5 million0.1%
63.North Macedonia$13 million0.05%
64.Bosnia/Herzegovina$13 million0.05%
65.Taiwan$12.5 million0.04%
66.Costa Rica$9.7 million0.03%
67.Luxembourg$9.7 million0.03%
68.Moldova$9 million0.03%
69.Saudi Arabia$7.2 million0.03%
70.Jordan$6.7 million0.02%
71.Guatemala$5.8 million0.02%
72.Uzbekistan$5.5 million0.02%
73.El Salvador$5.4 million0.02%
74.Dominican Republic$4.4 million0.02%
75.Philippines$3.8 million0.01%
76.Eswatini$3.7 million0.01%
77.Trinidad/Tobago$3.1 million0.01%
78.Azerbaijan$2.9 million0.01%
79.Antigua/Barbuda$2.8 million0.01%
80.Bangladesh$2.6 million0.01%
81.Iceland$2.5 million0.01%
82.Morocco$2.2 million0.01%
83.Georgia$2.2 million0.01%
84.Zambia$1.8 million0.01%
85.Sri Lanka$1.6 million0.01%
86.Uruguay$1.6 million0.01%
87.Nigeria$1.4 million0.01%
88.Barbados$1.4 million0.005%
89.Syria$1.3 million0.005%
90.Montenegro$1.2 million0.004%
91.Iran$1.2 million0.004%
92.Tunisia$1 million0.004%
93.Venezuela$1 million0.004%
94.Algeria$1 million0.004%
95.Malta$974,0000.003%
96.Cyprus$892,0000.003%
97.Oman$828,0000.003%
98.Madagascar$782,0000.003%
99.Panama$719,0000.003%
100.Pakistan$716,0000.003%
101.Bolivia$633,0000.002%
102.Kyrgyzstan$584,0000.002%
103.Senegal$532,0000.002%
104.Sao Tome/Principe$499,0000.002%
105.Uganda$433,0000.002%
106.Gambia$417,0000.001%
107.Guinea$404,0000.001%
108.Albania$387,0000.001%
109.Niger$324,0000.001%
110.Cameroon$305,0000.001%
111.Benin$286,0000.001%
112.New Caledonia$256,0000.001%
113.Macao$256,0000.001%
114.Honduras$229,0000.001%
115.Kenya$173,0000.001%
116.Turkmenistan$160,0000.001%
117.Gabon$149,0000.001%
118.Zimbabwe$147,0000.001%
119.Curaçao$145,0000.001%
120.Grenada$117,0000.0004%
121.Jamaica$106,0000.0004%
122.Sudan$88,0000.0003%
123.Tajikistan$87,0000.0003%
124.Mongolia$87,0000.0003%
125.Bahrain$87,0000.0003%
126.Fiji$67,0000.0002%
127.Cook Islands$66,0000.0002%
128.Gibraltar$60,0000.0002%
129.Palestine$58,0000.0002%
130.US Minor Outlying Is$51,0000.0002%
131.St Vincent/Grenadines$42,0000.0001%
132.Kuwait$40,0000.0001%
133.Qatar$38,0000.0001%
134.Cuba$36,0000.0001%
135.Myanmar (Burma)$36,0000.0001%
136.Nicaragua$35,0000.0001%
137.Guyana$33,0000.0001%
138.Mauritius$30,0000.0001%
139.Suriname$30,0000.0001%
140.British Virgin Islands$29,0000.0001%
141.Togo$27,0000.0001%
142.Dominica$26,0000.0001%
143.Paraguay$19,0000.0001%
144.Mozambique$18,0000.0001%
145.Nauru$18,0000.0001%
146.Samoa$15,0000.0001%
147.Tokelau$14,0000.00005%
148.Vanuatu$12,0000.00004%
149.Andorra$12,0000.00004%
150.Iraq$10,0000.00003%
151.Tanzania$10,0000.00003%
152.Mali$7,0000.00002%
153.Faroe Islands$7,0000.00002%
154.Marshall Islands$6,0000.00002%
155.Aruba$5,0000.00002%
156.French Polynesia$5,0000.00002%
157.North Korea$4,0000.00001%
158.Haiti$3,0000.00001%
159.Lesotho$2,0000.00001%
160.Namibia$2,0000.00001%
161.Bermuda$2,0000.00001%
162.Botswana$1,0000.000003%
163.Angola$1,0000.000003%
164.Afghanistan$1,0000.000003%
165.Papua New Guinea$1,0000.000003%
166.Burkina Faso$1,0000.000003%
167.Turks/Caicos Islands$1,0000.000003%
168.Saint Lucia$1,0000.000003%
169.Sierra Leone$1,0000.000003%
170.Saint Lucia$1,0000.000003%
171.Sierra Leone$1,0000.000003%


See also Chocolate Imports by Country, Hot Chocolate Exports by Country and Germany’s Top 10 Exports

Research Sources:
Candy Industry, 2015 Top 100 Confectionery Companies in the World. Accessed on May 9, 2019

Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on May 9, 2019

Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on May 9, 2019

The World Factbook, Field Listing: Exports – Commodities, Central Intelligence Agency. Accessed on May 9, 2019

Trade Map, International Trade Centre. Accessed on May 9, 2019

Wikipedia, Potato. Accessed on May 9, 2019




Filed Under: Food, Processed