The food and beverage industry is a decisive pillar of the European economy, accounting for annual revenues of more than 956 billion euros, more than 4 million employees (representing 15 percent of all E.U. employment) and import and export volumes of 56 and 65 billion euros, respectively.
In Spain, the industry carries considerable weight, with the participation of some 30,000 companies, annual consumption amounting to 94 billion euros, and half a million people employed in the sector.
The industry's exports have shown positive growth since the mid-1990s, indicating that globalization has been happening in the industry as part of an ongoing, long-term effort, and not just in reaction to the recent effects of the recession on domestic demand.
In 2012, the food and beverage industry exported products worth more than 22 billion euros, accounting for nearly 10 percent of Spain's total exports and reflecting an increase of 9.4 percent with respect to 2011. This is nearly three times the increase in Spanish exports as a whole.
Against this backdrop, the first question companies should ask themselves is: Which markets are of interest for exporting and selling food and beverage products? Once identified, what kind of market information is relevant to guiding this strategic plan?
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