Summer is on its way and with that the German tomato as well. In Germany the tomatoes are by far the most loved vegetable variety. According to provisional calculations of the 'Bundesanstalt für Landwirtschaft und Ernährung' (BLE), the Germans consumed 20.6kg of tomatoes in financial year 2012/2013 per head of the population (2011/2012 24.9kg). Amongst that, 6.7kg fresh tomatoes and 13.9kg processed tomato products. The consumption of the total population reached about 1.69 million ton.
The demand for tomatoes cannot be covered by domestic production in Germany. In 2012, according to provisional figures, tomatoes were grown under glass on 315 HA (2011: 321 HA). The harvested quantity amounted to about 61,200 tons in 2012. In order to satisfy the local demand about 637,100 tons of tomatoes were imported by Germany from EU-countries. In 2011 this was almost 663,000 tons. The most important import countries were the Netherlands with more than 354,300 tons, Spain with almost 163,500 tons, Belgium with about 58,600 tons and Italy with almost 29,400 tons. The import from non-EU countries amounted in total to about 45,700 tons. Of these countries, Morocco with about 36,000 tons was the most important import country.
The demand for tomatoes cannot be covered by domestic production in Germany. In 2012, according to provisional figures, tomatoes were grown under glass on 315 HA (2011: 321 HA). The harvested quantity amounted to about 61,200 tons in 2012. In order to satisfy the local demand about 637,100 tons of tomatoes were imported by Germany from EU-countries. In 2011 this was almost 663,000 tons. The most important import countries were the Netherlands with more than 354,300 tons, Spain with almost 163,500 tons, Belgium with about 58,600 tons and Italy with almost 29,400 tons. The import from non-EU countries amounted in total to about 45,700 tons. Of these countries, Morocco with about 36,000 tons was the most important import country.
