The Monopoly Table: Crop, Country, Share
Most EU crops are spread across a dozen producers. Four are not. In 2024 the top country's share of the EU-27 crop reached 97.5% for cotton seed (Greece), 90.1% for fibre flax (France), 78.7% for hazelnuts (Italy) and 76.7% for hops (Germany) — positions verified year by year in dataset apro_cpsh1.
These are not statistical artifacts of a small crop: flax and hazelnuts each moved close to or above one million and 150 thousand tonnes respectively in 2024, and hops are the core ingredient of a multi-billion-euro beverage industry. Cotton seed is the smallest of the four and the most dominated.
The common structure: a specialised processing industry sits inside the leader's borders, so the crop grows where the buyer is. Lint mills, linen spinning, hazelnut processing and hop kilns all cluster — and the farm map follows the factory map.
Top-1 country share of the EU-27 crop, 2024, dataset apro_cpsh1. Each leader also led every year 2015-2024.
| Crop (code) | Leader | Leader volume 2024 (1 000 t) | EU-27 total (1 000 t) | Leader share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cotton seed (I1150) | Greece | 702.9 | 720.6 | 97.5% |
| Fibre flax (I2100) | France | 1 059.1 | 1 174.8 | 90.1% |
| Hazelnuts (F4200) | Italy | 120.5 | 153.1 | 78.7% |
| Hops (I4000) | Germany | 46.5 | 60.6 | 76.7% |
Cotton's 97.5%: Greece's Near-Total Dependency
Cotton seed is the most concentrated crop in this set: in 2024 Greece reported 702.9 thousand tonnes of the EU-27's 720.6 — 97.5%. Spain, the only other EU producer with volume, reported 17.75 thousand tonnes: 2.5%. There is no third supplier of meaningful size.
The Greek series swings around its level rather than trending: 857.3 thousand tonnes in 2015, a 1 088.4 thousand-tonne peak in 2019, 702.9 in 2024. The EU total fell over the same window, from 929.7 to 720.6 thousand tonnes — a shrinking crop with a fixed address.
For a European textile buyer the arithmetic is blunt: EU cotton fibre statistics are Greek weather and Greek water policy statistics. Everything else in the EU is import-dependent anyway; the domestic 2.5% adds no diversification.
Cotton seed production, selected years, dataset apro_cpsh1. The 2020 EU-27 aggregate is not reported in the fixture.
| Year | Greece (1 000 t) | Spain (1 000 t) | EU-27 (1 000 t) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 857.3 | 72.4 | 929.7 |
| 2020 | 1 065.1 | 83.1 | — |
| 2024 | 702.9 | 17.8 | 720.6 |
Flax and Hazelnuts: The 80-90% Club
France grows 1 059.1 thousand tonnes of the EU-27's 1 174.8 thousand tonnes of fibre flax — 90.1%, on an area that doubled over the decade (78.9 to 158.3 thousand hectares). Belgium is second with 92.0 thousand tonnes (7.8%), the Netherlands third with 19.5 (1.7%). The French series nearly doubled from 525.6 thousand tonnes in 2015 to a 2024 record, with one sharp dip to 515.3 in 2023.
Italy grows 120.5 thousand tonnes of the EU-27's 153.1 thousand tonnes of hazelnuts — 78.7%, from an orchard area that grew from 68.6 to 90.4 thousand hectares over the decade. Poland (9.8, 6.4%) and France (8.5, 5.5%) are distant followers; Italy led every single year from 2015 to 2024.
Both monopolies are demand-pulled: French linen spinning and Italian nut processing create the market that the acreage serves. The concentration is structural, not cyclical — a decade of data never shows the crown seriously contested.
The 80-90% club: leader and runner-up positions, EU-27 2024, dataset apro_cpsh1.
| Crop | Leader 2024 (1 000 t) | Share | Number two | Number two share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fibre flax | France 1 059.1 | 90.1% | Belgium 92.0 | 7.8% |
| Hazelnuts | Italy 120.5 | 78.7% | Poland 9.8 | 6.4% |
Hops: Germany's Two-Thirds-plus Monopoly
Germany produced 46.5 thousand tonnes of the EU-27's 60.6 thousand tonnes of hops in 2024 — 76.7%, from 20.5 thousand hectares and an implied 2.27 tonnes per hectare. The Czech Republic is second with 6.5 thousand tonnes (10.7%), Poland third with 3.0 (4.9%) and Slovenia fourth with 2.3 (3.7%).
The German series is level-with-variance, not trending: 28.4 thousand tonnes in 2015, a 48.5 peak in 2019, 34.4 low in 2022, back to 46.5 in 2024. Germany led in every year of the decade, and the Czech share never approached contention.
Together the top two hold 87.4% of the EU crop — the two-country beer-ingredient story the EU hop market has carried for decades, now with the numbers to check it against.
Hop production and German recorded area, EU-27 2024, dataset apro_cpsh1.
| Country | 2024 production (1 000 t) | Share of EU-27 | Recorded area 2024 (1 000 ha) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | 46.5 | 76.7% | 20.5 |
| Czechia | 6.5 | 10.7% | — |
| Poland | 3.0 | 4.9% | — |
| Slovenia | 2.3 | 3.7% | — |
Risk Reading: What Each Monopoly Means for Supply
A single-country crop is a single-weather-zone crop. The practical read differs by crop: cotton seed's 97.5% matters mainly to EU-internal textile supply (the EU imports most of its fibre anyway), while hazelnuts and hops sit inside products with global supply chains and real substitution options.
The runner-up shares show how thin the alternatives are: Spain holds 2.5% of cotton seed, Poland 6.4% of hazelnuts, Belgium 7.8% of flax, Czechia 10.7% of hops. In a bad leader year, the EU market imports or goes short — number two cannot absorb the gap.
For small food businesses and buyers, the four monopolies are watch items, not panic items: track the leader's harvest estimate, and treat the EU aggregate as a proxy for one country's season. All four shares above are recomputable from apro_cpsh1 by ranking members for 2024.
The monopoly watch table, EU-27 2015-2024, dataset apro_cpsh1.
| Monopoly crop | Leader | Leader share | Runner-up share | Crown contested in the decade? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cotton seed | Greece | 97.5% | 2.5% (Spain) | No |
| Fibre flax | France | 90.1% | 7.8% (Belgium) | No |
| Hazelnuts | Italy | 78.7% | 6.4% (Poland) | No |
| Hops | Germany | 76.7% | 10.7% (Czechia) | No |
Frequently Asked Questions
Which EU crop depends on one country the most?
Cotton seed: Greece produced 97.5% of the EU-27 crop in 2024 (702.9 of 720.6 thousand tonnes). The next most concentrated are fibre flax (France, 90.1%), hazelnuts (Italy, 78.7%) and hops (Germany, 76.7%).
What share of EU flax does France grow?
90.1%: France produced 1 059.1 of the EU-27's 1 174.8 thousand tonnes of fibre flax in 2024, on an area that doubled over the 2015-2024 decade.
Which country grows most EU hazelnuts?
Italy — 120.5 thousand tonnes in 2024, or 78.7% of the EU-27 crop of 153.1 thousand tonnes. Italy led every year from 2015 to 2024.
Did any of these crop crowns change hands in the decade?
No. Greece (cotton seed), France (flax), Italy (hazelnuts) and Germany (hops) led the EU in every year from 2015 to 2024 in the dataset.
Source data extracted from Eurostat dataset apro_cpsh1.
This article was generated using AI. The content is based on Eurostat data and is provided as a starting point — please verify all data with the original source.
