9.6 Million Tonnes of European Pear Production 2021–2025: A Complete Data Breakdown

EU Market Share: Who Dominates Production?

Over the five harvest years from 2021 to 2025, the EU-27 recorded total pear production of 9.61 million tonnes (1.92 Mt/yr). Italy holds the largest share at 19.2 %, followed closely by Belgium and the Netherlands. Turkey, a candidate country, produced an additional 2.25 million tonnes (449.4 thousand t/yr) over the same period but is not included in the EU total.

The top three producers — Italy, Belgium, and the Netherlands — together account for 55.4 % of total EU pear production. The Mediterranean states of Spain, Portugal, France, and Greece add another 32.1 %, concentrating nearly 87.5 % of all EU pear output in just seven member states.

Agricultural Efficiency: Yield per Hectare

The Eurostat apro_cpsh1 dataset does not publish official yield figures (YLD_HUMD_EU_T_HA) for pears as a permanent fruit crop. However, computed yields derived from harvested production divided by area (HPRD_HUMD_EU_THS_T / AR_THS_HA) reveal stark efficiency differences. In 2025, Belgium achieved 36.2 t/ha and the Netherlands 35.9 t/ha — the highest in the EU. France reached 25.4 t/ha, while Italy (18.3 t/ha), Spain (16.6 t/ha), and Portugal (12.2 t/ha) recorded lower computed yields.

Belgium and the Netherlands achieve their high yields through intensive orchard systems, producing roughly twice as much per hectare as the Mediterranean producers despite having a smaller total pear-growing area.

Regional and Climatic Divides Across Europe

Pear production is heavily concentrated in two broad geographic zones. Southern Europe (Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Greece) accounts for 51.3 % of the EU total, while Western Europe (Belgium, Netherlands, Germany) contributes 38.1 %. Eastern and Nordic states together represent approximately 10.6 % of output.

The Southern region alone produced more than half of all EU pears, driven by Italy's dominant output and the significant contributions of Spain, Portugal, France, and Greece. Western Europe — despite a cool maritime climate — ranks second due to the high-yielding, intensively managed orchards of Belgium and the Netherlands.

Temporal Trends: Market Stability vs. Volatility

The Netherlands posted the steadiest output across the five-year window, ranging narrowly from 323 to 358 thousand tonnes annually — a variation of just 10 %. Belgium remained broadly stable aside from a dip to 268.8 thousand tonnes in 2024 before recovering to 392.5 thousand tonnes in 2025. Italy exhibited the highest volatility, swinging from 255.7 thousand tonnes in 2023 to 519.2 thousand tonnes in 2022.

Portugal recorded a sharp decline from 225.4 thousand tonnes in 2021 to 118.4 thousand tonnes in 2023, thereafter stabilising near 125 thousand tonnes. France showed a consistent upward trajectory, nearly doubling from 69.1 thousand tonnes in 2021 to 157.1 thousand tonnes in 2025. Turkey, the largest producer in the broader European region, maintained stable output of 530–551 thousand tonnes from 2021 to 2023, rising to 631 thousand tonnes in 2024 before data became unavailable (flagged ":") for 2025.

Land Allocation: How Countries Prioritize Farmland

The EU-27 dedicated 495.4 thousand hectares to pear orchards over 2021–2025 (99.1 thousand ha/yr). Italy devotes the largest area by a wide margin, while Belgium and the Netherlands achieve their high production volumes on comparatively modest orchard footprints. Across the five-year period, the total pear-growing area in the EU declined from 105.4 thousand ha in 2021 to 94.3 thousand ha in 2025 — a reduction of 10.5 %.

Italy alone accounts for nearly a quarter of the EU's pear orchard area, yet its share of production (19.2 %) is proportionally lower than its land footprint, reflecting its lower computed yield per hectare compared to Belgium and the Netherlands. The five largest land-allocating countries (Italy, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Netherlands) together represent 71.7 % of the total EU pear area.

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