Turnover and production from the food and drink industry in the EU outperformed the overall manufacturing sector in Q3 and represented the biggest quarterly jump in growth in 2016, according to new figures. In the period July to September 2016, food and drink production (adjusted for price) increased by one percent on the previous month, marking the biggest increase of the year, according to figures from FoodDrinkEurope.

Turnover was up 1.5 percent on the previous month, also the biggest uplift of the year, according to the EU trade body, whose members include Danone, Coca-Cola and Tate & Lyle.

In Q3, the food and drink industry in the EU performed better than the overall
manufacturing industry.

The figures will be a welcome boon for the food and drink sector, as it comes amid an EU in which some of its biggest economies, such as France, are suffering while growth is expected to slow in Germany next year.

Food manufacturing prices were up by 0.9 percent in Q3 while employment in the period was up by 0.2 percent.

Overall, employment in the food and drink industry remained on a growth trend, and in the long term, continues to outperform the average employment level growth in the manufacturing industry.

While it is difficult to detect overall trends from quarterly data, some of the best performing economies in the period were from the Eastern European countries of Poland, Bulgaria and Romania compared to the previous year. 

Austria, the Czech Republic and Estonia suffered the biggest fall in turnover compared to the previous year.

Other key figures include:
EU exports of food and drink products totalled €26billion ($27.15bn) in Q3 2016.

The trade surplus reached €8.2billion ($8.6bn) in Q3 2016.

The top 5 products with the largest share in export value generated €12.6bn ($13.5bn) in Q3 2016 (meat, spirits, wine, dairy, chocolate and confectionery).

EU imports of food and drink products reached €17.8bn ($18.6bn) (Q3 2016/Q3 2015: -3.2 percent).

Agricultural commodities
The FAO food price index (which measures the change in international prices of a basket of food commodities) increased by 6 percent in Q3 2016 compared to the previous quarter and reached a 16-month high in September – mainly driven by increases in sugar and dairy prices. 

In Q3 2016, EU and world markets prices of SMP, WMP and sugar increased compared to the previous quarter – as did prices for certain vegetable oils and coffee. At the same time, prices for soft wheat, corn, certain types of oilseeds and cocoa decreased. 

The year-on-year comparison shows a growth trend for most commodities, while price levels were lower for corn, soft wheat, rapeseed, and cocoa.

Retail
Retail trade in foodstuffs increased in July, decreased in August, and increased again in September.

Year-on-year, retail trade growth in foodstuffs and total retail trade increased equally by 2 percent compared to September 2015.

Consumer prices were 0.4 percent lower compared to Q2 2016.