The Total Crop: EU Strawberries by the Tonne
The European Union grew 1 194.9 thousand tonnes of strawberries in 2024 — about 1.2 million tonnes of a fruit that has to be picked, packed and moved within days. The chart beside this section plots the EU-27 line for the full decade 2015 to 2024, and its most striking feature is how flat it is.
The decade opens at 1 268.4 thousand tonnes in 2015 and closes at 1 194.9 thousand tonnes in 2024, a net change of -5.8%. Between those two points the line dips to 1 118.7 thousand tonnes in 2020 — the pandemic year — recovers to 1 197.5 in 2021 and 1 196.9 in 2022, and peaks at 1 214.4 in 2023 before easing back.
A coefficient of variation of 3.2% over ten years is low for a fresh fruit: European strawberry supply is one of the steadier lines in the dataset. One technical note for readers who compare tables: all ten of these years are a genuine EU-27 aggregate (no member-state summation was needed), so the line is directly comparable year on year.
EU-27 strawberry production over one decade, Eurostat dataset apro_cpsh1.
| Year | EU-27 strawberries (1 000 t) |
|---|---|
| 2015 | 1 268.4 |
| 2016 | 1 193.8 |
| 2017 | 1 154.7 |
| 2018 | 1 153.8 |
| 2019 | 1 186.4 |
| 2020 | 1 118.7 |
| 2021 | 1 197.5 |
| 2022 | 1 196.9 |
| 2023 | 1 214.4 |
| 2024 | 1 194.9 |
Spain's Quarter: Field Berries From Huelva
Spain is Europe's strawberry country: 323.5 thousand tonnes in 2024, 27.1% of the EU crop. The bar chart beside this section ranks the eight largest producers, and Spain's bar at 323.5 sits a clear head above the rest — but only a head.
Poland follows with 173.4 thousand tonnes (14.5%), Greece with 135.7 (11.4%), Italy with 123.9 (10.4%) and Germany with 120.4 (10.1%). The Netherlands adds 86.4 thousand tonnes (7.2%), France 76.2 (6.4%) and Belgium 51.5 (4.3%).
The honest counterpoint to Europe's concentration stories: no country reaches a third of EU strawberries. The two biggest, Spain and Poland together, hold 496.9 thousand tonnes — 41.6% of the European crop. Strawberries are a genuinely spread-out fruit, grown from Huelva's sandy fields to Polish smallholdings and Dutch glasshouses; anyone planning supply around a single origin is reading the map wrong.
The eight largest EU strawberry producers in 2024, Eurostat dataset apro_cpsh1.
| Country | 2024 production (1 000 t) | Share of EU-27 |
|---|---|---|
| Spain | 323.5 | 27.1% |
| Poland | 173.4 | 14.5% |
| Greece | 135.7 | 11.4% |
| Italy | 123.9 | 10.4% |
| Germany | 120.4 | 10.1% |
| Netherlands | 86.4 | 7.2% |
| France | 76.2 | 6.4% |
| Belgium | 51.5 | 4.3% |
Germany's Greenhouse Trays and Poland's Fields
Poland is the number two grower and the most field-based of the large producers: 173.4 thousand tonnes in 2024, down 19.2% from 214.6 thousand tonnes in 2015. Only 14.8 thousand tonnes of that — 8.5% — came from under glass or high accessible cover, so Polish strawberries are overwhelmingly open-field fruit, with the weather exposure that implies.
Germany is the opposite case within the same ranking: 120.4 thousand tonnes in 2024, down 30.3% from 172.6 thousand tonnes in 2015 — the steepest fall of the big five — but 41.8 thousand tonnes, 34.7% of the German crop, grew under cover. A third of German strawberries come off protected trays rather than fields.
The multi-line chart beside this section sets the two countries side by side for the decade: Poland's line runs above Germany's every year and slides from 214.6 to 173.4, while Germany's falls from 172.6 to 120.4. Poland also shows the slightly higher year-to-year variation of the pair (CV 9.6 against Germany's 9.7 — effectively equal), which is the point: two countries, similar volatility, two different production systems.
Poland and Germany against the EU-27 line, 2015 to 2024, Eurostat dataset apro_cpsh1. The dataset publishes no EU-wide under-cover aggregate.
| Country | 2015 (1 000 t) | 2024 (1 000 t) | Net change | Under cover, 2024 (1 000 t) | Share under cover |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poland | 214.6 | 173.4 | -19.2% | 14.8 | 8.5% |
| Germany | 172.6 | 120.4 | -30.3% | 41.8 | 34.7% |
| EU-27 | 1 268.4 | 1 194.9 | -5.8% | — | — |
Cover Versus Field: The Two Strawberry Economies
The under-cover share bars beside this section show the sharpest split in the whole strawberry story. Spain grows 319.5 of its 323.5 thousand tonnes — 98.7% — under glass or high accessible cover (the S0000S series). Italy is at 94.7 of 123.9 thousand tonnes (76.5%), the Netherlands 66.0 of 86.4 (76.4%) and France 56.6 of 76.2 (74.3%).
Germany sits in the middle at 41.8 of 120.4 thousand tonnes (34.7%), and Poland at the bottom: 14.8 of 173.4 thousand tonnes (8.5%). Read together, Europe has two strawberry economies — a protected one in the south-west and west, and an open-field one in the centre-east.
The direction of travel matters too. Spain's under-cover tonnage slipped from 394.4 thousand tonnes in 2015 to 319.5 in 2024, a fall of 19.0%, while the Netherlands total rose from 57.7 to 86.4 thousand tonnes, up 49.8%. Protected berry production is not disappearing; it is being reweighted across the continent. Caveat for the careful reader: this dataset reports under-cover volumes for the countries shown here, not for the EU as a whole, so there is no single European "share under cover" figure to quote.
Strawberries under glass or high accessible cover, 2024, Eurostat dataset apro_cpsh1. Covers only the countries reporting the S0000S series.
| Country | Under cover, 2024 (1 000 t) | Total, 2024 (1 000 t) | Share of crop under cover |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spain | 319.5 | 323.5 | 98.7% |
| Italy | 94.7 | 123.9 | 76.5% |
| Netherlands | 66.0 | 86.4 | 76.4% |
| France | 56.6 | 76.2 | 74.3% |
| Germany | 41.8 | 120.4 | 34.7% |
| Poland | 14.8 | 173.4 | 8.5% |
Season Math: When Each Producer Fills the Shelf
The multi-line chart beside this section overlays three lines: Spain's total strawberry crop, Spain's under-cover volume, and the Netherlands total. Spain's two lines are almost on top of each other — the country's total fell from 397.4 thousand tonnes in 2015 to 323.5 in 2024 (-18.6%), and its covered line from 394.4 to 319.5 (-19.0%), because nearly every Spanish strawberry is a covered one.
The Netherlands line moves the other way, from 57.7 to 86.4 thousand tonnes, +49.8% over the decade. That is the season logic in one picture: northern European glasshouse production is built to deliver berries out of season, when the open-field crop is empty, and it has been growing into that window. The dataset cannot show which weeks those are — apro_cpsh1 carries annual tonnages only, with no monthly breakdown, so any claim about specific selling windows would go beyond the data.
For reliability, the country-level coefficient of variation is the honest read: Italy 8.3, Spain 9.5, Poland 9.6, Germany 9.7 and the Netherlands 14.8, against 3.2 for the EU-27 total. The Dutch line is the fastest-growing and the least stable of the five — a reminder that stable European supply is an average of steadier and jumpier national harvests.
The strawberry decade by line, Eurostat dataset apro_cpsh1. CV is the coefficient of variation of each series, in percent.
| Line, 2015-2024 | 2015 (1 000 t) | 2024 (1 000 t) | Net change | CV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EU-27 total | 1 268.4 | 1 194.9 | -5.8% | 3.2 |
| Spain total | 397.4 | 323.5 | -18.6% | 9.5 |
| Spain under cover | 394.4 | 319.5 | -19.0% | — |
| Netherlands total | 57.7 | 86.4 | +49.8% | 14.8 |
| Poland total | 214.6 | 173.4 | -19.2% | 9.6 |
| Germany total | 172.6 | 120.4 | -30.3% | 9.7 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Which country grows the most strawberries in the EU?
Spain: 323.5 thousand tonnes in 2024, 27.1% of the EU-27 crop. Poland is second with 173.4 thousand tonnes (14.5%) and Greece third with 135.7 thousand tonnes (11.4%).
Are most EU strawberries grown in Spain?
No. Spain grows about a quarter of the EU crop, 27.1% in 2024. Together Spain and Poland account for 496.9 thousand tonnes, 41.6% of the European total, and no single country reaches a third.
Is strawberry production concentrated in one country?
Not in the way some crops are. Strawberries are spread across at least eight producing countries, from Spain (323.5 thousand tonnes in 2024) to Belgium (51.5), and the EU-27 total is unusually stable over the decade, with a coefficient of variation of 3.2%.
How much of the EU strawberry crop is grown under cover?
The dataset reports under-cover volumes country by country rather than for the EU as a whole: Spain 319.5 thousand tonnes (98.7% of its crop) in 2024, Italy 94.7 (76.5%), the Netherlands 66.0 (76.4%), France 56.6 (74.3%), Germany 41.8 (34.7%) and Poland 14.8 (8.5%). No EU-wide covered share is published.
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.
