The overall value of barley exports rose by an average 17.7% for all exporting countries since 2020 when total barley shipments were valued at $7.42 billion.
Exports of barley sold on international markets in 2024 plummeted via a -21% reduction starting from $11 billion in 2023.
Barley is a traditional food ingredient used in soups, stews, breads and beverages. More recently, this major cereal grain has become a staple component for health foods. Barley is also used to ferment malt beer. A member of the grass family, barley has an additional food use serving as animal fodder.
The 5 biggest exporters of barley are Australia, France, Russia, Germany and Canada. Combined, those 5 major suppliers approached two-thirds (61.3%) of all exported barley by sales during 2024. Such a high percentage indicates a relatively concentrated cohort of international barley suppliers.
Applying a continental lens, suppliers in Europe sold the highest dollar worth of exported barley during 2024 with shipments valued at $5.3 billion roughly three-fifths (60.5%) of total barley exports.
In second place were exporters in Oceania’s Australia and, to a much lesser degree, New Zealand (18.8%), ahead of Latin America plus the Caribbean (8.2%) and North America (8%).
Smaller percentages came from providers in Asia (4.3%) and Africa (0.1%).
For research purposes, the 4-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix for raw barley is 1003 (which is the focus of this analysis). Please note that the HTS codes for rolled, flaked, pearled or otherwise worked barley are scattered under 6-digit subgroups attached to a 1104 prefix.
Barley Exports by Country
Below are the 15 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of raw barley during 2024.
- Australia: US$1.6 billion (18.8% of total barley exports)
- France: $1.4 billion (16%)
- Russia: $950.8 million (10.9%)
- Germany: $698.2 million (8%)
- Canada: $659.8 million (7.6%)
- Argentina: $632.3 million (7.2%)
- Ukraine: $557.3 million (6.4%)
- Romania: $492.3 million (5.6%)
- Kazakhstan: $265.2 million (3%)
- Hungary: $209.3 million (2.4%)
- United Kingdom: $175.2 million (2%)
- Bulgaria: $169.7 million (1.9%)
- Czech Republic: $95.7 million (1.1%)
- Türkiye: $91.5 million (1%)
- Denmark: $91.5 million (1%)
By value, the listed 15 countries shipped 93.1% of global barley exported in 2024.
Among the top exporters, growth barley exporters since 2023 were: Türkiye (up 308.8%), Ukraine (up 53.8%), Bulgaria (up 42.6%) and Kazakhstan (up 0.4%).
Those countries that posted declines in their exported barley sales were led by: Denmark (down -71.8% from 2023), United Kingdom (down -36.7%), France (down -32.2%), Australia (down -28.5%) and Germany (down -25.5%).
Searchable List of Barley Exporting Countries in 2024
The 86 international suppliers in the automated database below represent 100% of barley exported around the globe during 2024.
| Rank | Exporter | Barley Exports | 2023-4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Australia | $1,645,292,000 | -28.5% |
| 2. | France | $1,395,681,000 | -32.2% |
| 3. | Russia | $950,811,000 | -18.6% |
| 4. | Germany | $698,155,000 | -25.5% |
| 5. | Canada | $659,781,000 | -20.2% |
| 6. | Argentina | $632,270,000 | -12.7% |
| 7. | Ukraine | $557,315,000 | +53.8% |
| 8. | Romania | $492,309,000 | -4.4% |
| 9. | Kazakhstan | $265,183,000 | +0.4% |
| 10. | Hungary | $209,264,000 | -22.3% |
| 11. | United Kingdom | $175,228,000 | -36.7% |
| 12. | Bulgaria | $169,714,000 | +42.6% |
| 13. | Czech Republic | $95,658,000 | -19.9% |
| 14. | Türkiye | $91,480,000 | +308.8% |
| 15. | Denmark | $91,460,000 | -71.8% |
| 16. | Uruguay | $81,174,000 | +56% |
| 17. | Poland | $72,279,000 | -38.3% |
| 18. | Lithuania | $60,518,000 | +3.7% |
| 19. | United States | $42,494,000 | +132% |
| 20. | Estonia | $35,370,000 | -24.9% |
| 21. | Slovakia | $34,281,000 | +0.8% |
| 22. | Croatia | $33,292,000 | +0% |
| 23. | Latvia | $29,251,000 | -7.7% |
| 24. | Belgium | $26,567,000 | -1.6% |
| 25. | Moldova | $25,517,000 | -2.7% |
| 26. | Sweden | $23,296,000 | -77.5% |
| 27. | Netherlands | $22,122,000 | -37.3% |
| 28. | Austria | $17,546,000 | -13.7% |
| 29. | Serbia | $16,288,000 | -19.6% |
| 30. | Spain | $16,265,000 | -43.7% |
| 31. | United Arab Emirates | $12,543,000 | -20.9% |
| 32. | Ireland | $7,815,000 | +4.6% |
| 33. | Finland | $6,264,000 | -46.2% |
| 34. | Portugal | $4,866,000 | -85.5% |
| 35. | North Macedonia | $4,828,000 | +96.7% |
| 36. | Kenya | $4,635,000 | +71.9% |
| 37. | South Africa | $4,336,000 | +41.2% |
| 38. | Slovenia | $3,071,000 | +25.7% |
| 39. | Luxembourg | $2,940,000 | -12% |
| 40. | Afghanistan | $2,353,000 | -42.6% |
| 41. | India | $2,252,000 | -18.6% |
| 42. | Greece | $1,946,000 | +52% |
| 43. | Italy | $1,467,000 | +3.1% |
| 44. | Vietnam | $1,165,000 | -73.7% |
| 45. | Syria | $775,000 | +445.8% |
| 46. | Tanzania | $525,000 | 64.63 |
| 47. | Switzerland | $447,000 | +4.9% |
| 48. | Zambia | $384,000 | -54.7% |
| 49. | South Korea | $249,000 | +14.2% |
| 50. | Uganda | $240,000 | -66.6% |
| 51. | Kyrgyzstan | $182,000 | +1922% |
| 52. | Colombia | $92,000 | 0% |
| 53. | Japan | $91,000 | +37.9% |
| 54. | Morocco | $81,000 | +800% |
| 55. | Peru | $81,000 | -27% |
| 56. | Norway | $76,000 | -1.3% |
| 57. | Georgia | $76,000 | +40.7% |
| 58. | Malaysia | $73,000 | -39.7% |
| 59. | Singapore | $70,000 | +112.1% |
| 60. | Qatar | $62,000 | 0% |
| 61. | Israel | $60,000 | +130.8% |
| 62. | Chile | $52,000 | -50.5% |
| 63. | mainland China | $51,000 | +88.9% |
| 64. | New Zealand | $41,000 | -89.5% |
| 65. | Ecuador | $38,000 | +5.6% |
| 66. | Yemen | $27,000 | -3.6% |
| 67. | Ethiopia | $26,000 | -88.4% |
| 68. | Tunisia | $25,000 | 0% |
| 69. | Azerbaijan | $22,000 | -94% |
| 70. | Algeria | $18,000 | -50% |
| 71. | Bahrain | $17,000 | 0% |
| 72. | Lebanon | $15,000 | -75% |
| 73. | Guatemala | $14,000 | +7.7% |
| 74. | Thailand | $11,000 | +175% |
| 75. | Laos | $9,000 | 0% |
| 76. | Trinidad/Tobago | $6,000 | +500% |
| 77. | Egypt | $6,000 | -81.3% |
| 78. | Iran | $5,000 | 0% |
| 79. | Bosnia/Herzegovina | $5,000 | -44.4% |
| 80. | Sri Lanka | $4,000 | -20% |
| 81. | Burundi | $1,000 | 0% |
| 82. | Brazil | $1,000 | 0% |
| 83. | Kuwait | $1,000 | 0% |
| 84. | Lesotho | $1,000 | 0% |
| 85. | Indonesia | $1,000 | -66.7% |
| 86. | South Sudan | $1,000 | 0% |
The fastest growers in terms of money collected from their barley exports are: Tanzania (up 6,463% from 2023), Kyrgyzstan (up 1,922%), Morocco (up 800%), Trinidad and Tobago (up 500%) and Syria (up 445.8%).
Note that you can change the presentation order by clicking the triangle icon at the top of any of the columns above. An entry of 0% in the right-most column means 2023 data was unavailable.
Countries Exporting Most Barley by Shipment Weight
The worldwide total for barley shipped in 2024 was an estimated 36.9 million tons, down by -0.2% from 37 million tons in 2020. Year over year, global shipments fell by -3.6% from 38.3 million tons during 2023.
Listed below are the top 15 counties that exported the greatest amounts of barley in terms of shipment tonnage.
- Australia: 6,425,833 tons of exported barley (up 50.2% from 2020)
- France: 5,600,339 tons (down -17.3%)
- Russia: 4,039,430 tons (down -18.6%)
- Ukraine: 3,377,106 tons (down -33.1%)
- Germany: 3,361,591 tons (up 39.2%)
- Argentina: 2,674,809 tons (up 22.5%)
- Canada: 2,570,828 tons (down -8.4%)
- Romania: 2,488,512 tons (up 89.8%)
- Kazakhstan: 1,599,807 tons (up 63.2%)
- Bulgaria: 859,082 tons (up 154.6%)
- United Kingdom: 628,920 tons (down -59.9%)
- Uruguay: 351,847 tons (up 754.3%)
- Türkiye: 340,490 tons (up 2309.9%)
- Poland: 316,988 tons (up 5.1%)
- Lithuania: 300,737 tons (down -21.7%)
- Denmark: 298,478 tons (down -56.3%)
- United States: 180,897 tons (down -3.5%)
The strongest gainers from 2020 to 2024 in terms of physical shipment volume were Türkiye (up 2,310%), Uruguay (up 754.3%), Bulgaria (up 154.6%) then Romania (up 89.8%).
Average Prices for Barley by Major Export Countries
The worldwide average unit price for barley exports was US$237 per ton in 2024.
Listed below are average unit prices for the 15 of the top barley exporters worldwide. They are listed in ascending order starting with countries that exported the highest overall dollar value worth of barley.
- Australia: US$256 per ton of exported barley (down -5.9% from 2023)
- France: $249 per ton (down -17.5%)
- Russia: $235 per ton (down -5.6%)
- Germany: $208 per ton (down -18.4%)
- Canada: $257 per ton (down -24.4%)
- Argentina: $236 per ton (down -25.6%)
- Ukraine: $165 per ton (down -1.8%)
- Romania: $198 per ton (down -13.2%)
- Kazakhstan: $166 per ton (down -18.2%)
- United Kingdom: $279 per ton (down -6.1%)
- Bulgaria: $198 per ton (down -12.4%)
- Türkiye: $269 per ton (down -8.8%)
- Denmark: $306 per ton (2023 data unavailable)
- Uruguay: $231 per ton (down -30%)
- Poland: $228 per ton (down -6.9%)
- Lithuania: $201 per ton (down -19.3%)
Average unit prices above the world benchmark of $275 per ton are charged by barley exporters in Australia, France, Canada, United Kingdom, Türkiye and Denmark.
The lowest average prices among the listed competitors apply to barley shippers in Ukraine ($165 per ton) and Kazakhstan ($166 per ton).
Countries Generating Greatest Surpluses Trading Barley
The following countries posted the highest positive net exports for barley during 2024. 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 exported barley and its import purchases for that same commodity.
- Australia: US$1.6 billion (net export surplus down -28.5% since 2023)
- France: $1.4 billion (down -32.2%)
- Russia: $950.5 million (down -18.6%)
- Canada: $632.5 million (down -22.4%)
- Argentina: $632.2 million (down -12.7%)
- Ukraine: $557 million (up 53.8%)
- Romania: $434.3 million (up 7.7%)
- Germany: $360 million (down -20.4%)
- Kazakhstan: $238.9 million (up 14.8%)
- Hungary: $202.3 million (down -23.2%)
- Bulgaria: $168.9 million (up 43.1%)
- United Kingdom: $120.5 million (down -49.3%)
- Czech Republic: $83.5 million (down -18.7%)
- Uruguay: $81.2 million (up 100.8%)
- Türkiye: $58 million (reversing a -$411.1 million deficit)
World-leading barley exporter Australia generated the highest surplus in the international trade of barley. In turn, this positive cashflow confirms both countries’ strong competitive advantages for this specific product category.
Countries Incurring Worst Deficits Trading Barley
The following countries posted the highest negative net exports for barley during 2024. 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 imported barley purchases and its exports for that same commodity.
- mainland China: -US$3.8 billion (net export deficit up 0.5% since 2023)
- Saudi Arabia: -$879.4 million (up 25.1%)
- Netherlands: -$577.2 million (down -14%)
- Belgium: -$430.7 million (down -18.1%)
- Japan: -$343.8 million (down -12.4%)
- Spain: -$341.5 million (down -60.6%)
- Brazil: -$264.9 million (up 8.2%)
- Morocco: -$261.2 million (down -7.3%)
- Italy: -$157.3 million (down -13.2%)
- Algeria: -$147.8 million (up 208.7%)
- Kuwait: -$135.9 million (up 1.6%)
- Colombia: -$117.1 million (down -18.3%)
- Iran: -$114.2 million (down -89.5%)
- Portugal: -$111.4 million (down -6.2%)
- Ireland: -$105.1 million (up 52.8%)
Mainland China posted the highest deficit in the international trade of barley. In turn, this negative cashflow highlights strong Chinese competitive disadvantages for this specific product category but also signals opportunities for barley-supplying countries that help satisfy the powerful consumer demand.
Types of Barley-based Drinks
The following beverages are made with barley as one of the key ingredients.
- barley water
- barley wine
- barley-based soft drinks
- beer
- expresso-style hot drinks
- instant barley cereal drinks
- malt whisky
- malted milk
- roasted barley tea
- roasted grain beverages
See also Corn Exports by Country, Wheat Exports by Country, Rice Exports by Country and Top Fertilizers Exports by Country
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Exports – Commodities. Accessed on October 1, 2025
Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on October 1, 2025
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on October 1, 2025
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on October 1, 2025
Wikipedia, general description of barley and its uses. Accessed on October 1, 2025
Wikipedia, List of barley-based beverages. Accessed on October 1, 2025