EU Ice-Cream Output Reached 3.44bn Litres in 2025

Ice-cream production across the European Union increased in 2025, with manufacturers making 3.44bn litres during the year. Eurostat’s figures put annual growth at 1.9% compared with 2024, providing a measure of the size of the bloc’s manufacturing sector.

Germany was the largest producer, with output of 608m litres. Italy ranked second at 549m litres, followed by France with 525m litres. Together, the three countries accounted for almost half of total EU production, concentrating a substantial share of the sector in the bloc’s major manufacturing markets.

Italy registered the strongest annual increase among those leading producers. Its volume was 10% higher than in 2024. The published figures identify Germany, Italy and France as the principal contributors to the EU’s overall production total, while also showing that growth was not uniform across the three markets.

Trade beyond the EU also expanded. Extra-EU exports reached 289.8m kg in 2025, up by 10% from the previous year. France was the largest exporter, with 20% of the bloc’s extra-EU shipments. The Netherlands held a 15% share, while Germany and Belgium each represented 11%.

Imports from countries outside the EU rose by 12% over the same period. The export and import figures record movements of frozen products between the bloc and external markets, alongside the growth measured in domestic production. Eurostat’s data therefore covers both output and international trade in an established food-manufacturing category.

The production total exceeded three billion litres for the year, while external trade involved hundreds of millions of kilograms of ice cream. The figures describe the geographic distribution of EU manufacturing and the participation of member states in international markets without providing a breakdown by individual product type or destination.