The overall value of barley exports rose by an average 28.8% for all exporting countries since 2018 when total barley shipments were valued at $7.66 billion.
Exports of barley sold on international markets in 2022 fell by -9% from $10.8 billion during 2021.
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, Germany, Argentina and Canada. Combined, those 5 major suppliers generated over two-thirds (68.9%) of all exported barley by sales during 2022. 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 2022 with shipments valued at $5.45 billion or well over half (55.2%) of total barley exports. In second place were exporters in Oceania’s Australia and New Zealand (23.8%), ahead of Latin America plus the Caribbean (9.7%) and North America (8%).
Smaller percentages came from providers in Asia (3.2%) and Africa (0.02%).
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 2022.
- Australia: US$2.4 billion (23.8% of total barley exports)
- France: $1.8 billion (18.7%)
- Germany: $955.7 million (9.7%)
- Argentina: $873.2 million (8.9%)
- Canada: $777.8 million (7.9%)
- Romania: $451.5 million (4.6%)
- Ukraine: $447 million (4.5%)
- Russia: $362.2 million (3.7%)
- United Kingdom: $302.8 million (3.1%)
- Kazakhstan: $216 million (2.2%)
- Denmark: $178.1 million (1.8%)
- Hungary: $171.5 million (1.7%)
- Czech Republic: $125.9 million (1.3%)
- Poland: $100.4 million (1%)
- Türkiye: $88.2 million (0.9%)
By value, the listed 15 countries shipped 93.7% of global barley exported in 2022.
Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing barley exporters since 2021 were: Türkiye (up 127.7%), United Kingdom (up 50.8%), Argentina (up 43.8%) and Kazakhstan (up 30.9%).
Major suppliers that posted declines in their exported barley sales were led by: Ukraine (down -64.9% from 2021), Russia (down -62.5%), Denmark (down -28.9%), Canada (down -15.9%) and Romania (down -9.9%).
Countries Generating Greatest Surpluses Trading Barley
The following countries posted the highest positive net exports for barley during 2022. 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$2.4 billion (net export surplus up 15.7% since 2021)
- France: $1.8 billion (up 11.2%)
- Argentina: $873.2 million (up 44.8%)
- Canada: $708.1 million (down -18.4%)
- Germany: $468.6 million (up 20.8%)
- Ukraine: $446.5 million (down -64.7%)
- Romania: $375.6 million (down -8%)
- Russia: $361.5 million (down -62.5%)
- United Kingdom: $278.7 million (up 63.5%)
- Kazakhstan: $193.1 million (up 33.3%)
- Hungary: $159.5 million (down -7.9%)
- Czech Republic: $112.2 million (up 5.8%)
- Denmark: $107.6 million (down -54.5%)
- Uruguay: $82.1 million (up 17.8%)
- Estonia: $64.5 million (up 17.2%)
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 2022. 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$2.1 billion (net export deficit down -42.3% since 2021)
- Saudi Arabia: -$1.3 billion (up 15.5%)
- Netherlands: -$702.3 million (up 13.3%)
- Belgium: -$598.1 million (up 26.8%)
- Türkiye: -$449.8 million (down -28.6%)
- Japan: -$443 million (up 36.5%)
- Spain: -$410 million (up 479%)
- Iran: -$364.6 million (down -63.7%)
- Morocco: -$316 million (up 282.5%)
- Jordan: -$298.6 million (up 34.2%)
- Brazil: -$238 million (up 69.5%)
- Tunisia: -$210 million (down -21.9%)
- United States: -$190 million (reversing an $8.9 million surplus)
- Italy: -$187.8 million (up 24.4%)
- Kuwait: -$166.4 million (up 14.9%)
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
Searchable List of Barley Exporting Countries in 2022
The 83 international suppliers in the automated database below represent 100% of barley exported around the globe during 2022.
| Rank | Exporter | Barley Exports | 2021-2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Australia | $2,350,791,000 | +15.7% |
| 2. | France | $1,839,587,000 | +10.4% |
| 3. | Germany | $955,680,000 | +27.9% |
| 4. | Argentina | $873,186,000 | +43.8% |
| 5. | Canada | $777,844,000 | -15.9% |
| 6. | Romania | $451,503,000 | -9.9% |
| 7. | Ukraine | $447,049,000 | -64.9% |
| 8. | Russia | $362,207,000 | -62.5% |
| 9. | United Kingdom | $302,839,000 | +50.8% |
| 10. | Kazakhstan | $216,005,000 | +30.9% |
| 11. | Denmark | $178,146,000 | -28.9% |
| 12. | Hungary | $171,533,000 | -7.8% |
| 13. | Czech Republic | $125,911,000 | +5.5% |
| 14. | Poland | $100,382,000 | -8% |
| 15. | Türkiye | $88,207,000 | +127.7% |
| 16. | Uruguay | $82,265,000 | +17.9% |
| 17. | Sweden | $75,990,000 | -17.8% |
| 18. | Estonia | $65,796,000 | +17.3% |
| 19. | Bulgaria | $62,651,000 | -43.4% |
| 20. | Spain | $48,915,000 | -42.1% |
| 21. | Croatia | $39,888,000 | +2% |
| 22. | Serbia | $39,342,000 | +33% |
| 23. | Austria | $29,085,000 | +22.3% |
| 24. | Netherlands | $29,022,000 | -0.6% |
| 25. | Slovakia | $27,499,000 | -13.2% |
| 26. | Belgium | $21,773,000 | -27.4% |
| 27. | Lithuania | $19,735,000 | -70% |
| 28. | United States | $14,274,000 | -80.1% |
| 29. | Ireland | $10,442,000 | +24.7% |
| 30. | Latvia | $9,274,000 | -75.2% |
| 31. | Moldova | $7,832,000 | -75.6% |
| 32. | Portugal | $7,777,000 | +716.1% |
| 33. | Slovenia | $6,231,000 | +15.3% |
| 34. | North Macedonia | $4,418,000 | +40.7% |
| 35. | Azerbaijan | $3,671,000 | -48.4% |
| 36. | Luxembourg | $2,713,000 | +23.8% |
| 37. | Italy | $1,795,000 | -9.1% |
| 38. | Kenya | $1,783,000 | +12.8% |
| 39. | India | $1,148,000 | +28.8% |
| 40. | United Arab Emirates | $1,088,000 | -93.2% |
| 41. | Mexico | $924,000 | 0% |
| 42. | Georgia | $909,000 | +48.5% |
| 43. | Afghanistan | $859,000 | 0% |
| 44. | Finland | $813,000 | -95.3% |
| 45. | Vietnam | $536,000 | -75% |
| 46. | Switzerland | $490,000 | -14.5% |
| 47. | South Africa | $417,000 | -81.2% |
| 48. | New Zealand | $334,000 | +39.7% |
| 49. | Norway | $311,000 | +15.2% |
| 50. | South Korea | $295,000 | +7.3% |
| 51. | Syria | $236,000 | -60.7% |
| 52. | Greece | $187,000 | -36% |
| 53. | Peru | $156,000 | -44.5% |
| 54. | Singapore | $152,000 | -56.2% |
| 55. | Japan | $97,000 | +51.6% |
| 56. | Bosnia/Herzegovina | $87,000 | +47.5% |
| 57. | Ecuador | $54,000 | +50% |
| 58. | Malaysia | $51,000 | +2% |
| 59. | Algeria | $49,000 | +1533% |
| 60. | Tunisia | $46,000 | 0% |
| 61. | Israel | $30,000 | +3.4% |
| 62. | China | $29,000 | -54% |
| 63. | Ethiopia | $28,000 | +833.3% |
| 64. | Kyrgyzstan | $27,000 | -75.9% |
| 65. | Pakistan | $16,000 | -92.9% |
| 66. | Chile | $14,000 | -91.5% |
| 67. | Armenia | $7,000 | 0% |
| 68. | Guatemala | $7,000 | -46.2% |
| 69. | Djibouti | $5,000 | +400% |
| 70. | Uganda | $5,000 | -98.3% |
| 71. | Sri Lanka | $3,000 | -25% |
| 72. | Hong Kong | $2,000 | -50% |
| 73. | Iran | $2,000 | 0% |
| 74. | Egypt | $2,000 | 0% |
| 75. | Saudi Arabia | $2,000 | 0% |
| 76. | Namibia | $1,000 | 0% |
| 77. | Trinidad/Tobago | $1,000 | 0% |
| 78. | Iceland | $1,000 | 0% |
| 79. | Taiwan | $1,000 | -50% |
| 80. | Laos | $1,000 | 0% |
| 81. | Colombia | $1,000 | 0% |
| 82. | Brazil | $1,000 | 0% |
| 83. | Bahrain | $1,000 | 0% |
The fastest growers in terms of money collected from their barley exports are: Algeria (up 1,533% from 2021), Ethiopia (up 833.3%), Portugal (up 716.1%), Djibouti (up 400%), Türkiye (up 127.7%) and Japan (up 51.6%).
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 2021 data was unavailable.
Countries Exporting Most Barley by Shipment Weight
The worldwide total for barley shipped in 2022 was 31 million tons, down by -14% from 36 million tons in 2018. Year over year, global shipments fell by -29.2% from 43.8 million tons during 2021.
Listed below are the top 15 counties that exported the greatest amounts of barley in terms of shipment tonnage.
- Australia: 8,121,276 tons of exported barley (up 33.7% from 2021)
- France: 5,573,017 tons (down -10.1%)
- Germany: 3,060,941 tons (up 64.3%)
- Argentina: 2,904,961 tons (up 13.6%)
- Ukraine: 2,144,355 tons (down -40.4%)
- Canada: 2,033,585 tons (down -9.2%)
- Romania: 1,350,821 tons (up 1.1%)
- Russia: 1,163,763 tons (down -78.6%)
- United Kingdom: 876,906 tons (up 2.9%)
- Kazakhstan: 836,390 tons (down -52.2%)
- Denmark: 570,725 tons (down -13.8%)
- Poland: 304,621 tons (up 99.4%)
- Uruguay: 272,664 tons (up 3734.4%)
- Türkiye: 249,394 tons (up 1497.7%)
- Sweden: 220,790 tons (down -33.2%)
- Estonia: 211,653 tons (down -9.7%)
The five gainers from 2021 to 2022 in terms of physical shipment volume were Türkiye (up 64.7%), Argentina (up 15.9%), United Kingdom (up 13.8%), Uruguay (up 13.6%) then Kazakhstan (up 7.8%).
Average Prices for Barley by Major Export Countries
The worldwide average unit price for barley exports was US$318 per ton in 2022. That dollar average represents a 49.5% increase from $213 per ton during 2018 and a 28.4% inflation rate compared to the average $248 per ton for 2021.
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$289 per ton of exported barley (up 24.6% from 2021)
- France: $330 per ton (up 29.9%)
- Germany: $312 per ton (up 28.9%)
- Argentina: $301 per ton (up 24.4%)
- Canada: $382 per ton (up 45.2%)
- Romania: $334 per ton (up 40.3%)
- Ukraine: $208 per ton (down -7.6%)
- Russia: $311 per ton (up 27.5%)
- United Kingdom: $345 per ton (up 32.2%)
- Kazakhstan: $258 per ton (up 21.1%)
- Denmark: $312 per ton (up 20.9%)
- Poland: $330 per ton (up 37.5%)
- Türkiye: $354 per ton (up 38.3%)
- Uruguay: $302 per ton (up 3.8%)
- Sweden: $344 per ton (up 39.3%)
- Estonia: $311 per ton (up 21.0%)
Average unit prices above the world benchmark of $318 per ton are charged by barley exporters in Canada, Türkiye, United Kingdom, Sweden, Romania, France and Poland.
The lowest average prices among the listed competitors apply to barley shippers in the Ukraine ($208 per ton-estimated), Kazakhstan ($258 per ton) and world-leading barley supplier Australia ($289 per ton).
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 August 19, 2023
Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on August 19, 2023
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on August 19, 2023
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on August 19, 2023
Wikipedia, general description of barley and its uses. Accessed on August 19, 2023
Wikipedia, List of barley-based beverages. Accessed on August 19, 2023
