Honey: World Production, Top Exporters, Top Importers, and United States Imports by Country

This report covers specifically the product Honey, HS: 0409. We report production of honey by country with a bar chart. We rank the world’s top exporters and the world’s top importers. We conclude with United States imports of honey by foreign country.

Honey Production by Country

Honey, HS 0409, is a naturally produced sweet gathered and used by man for the last 8000 years. There are many different grades of honey available. Natural grade is different from industrial. Every batch of honey is special, even when from a similar region bees gather nectar from a wide variety of plants, producing distinct tastes. For the purpose of this report we lump all grades together under the HS code of 0409. Below is a bar graph of the world’s top honey producers by country and amount. The data is available at http://faostat.fao.org/site/339/default.aspx. Countries vary by year available. Check website for more specifics.

World Honey Production by Country and Tonnage

World Honey Exporters

With PIERS StatsPlus we can look at honey exports and imports. Following the production trends, China was the number one honey exporter in the world, selling 284 million dollars worth in 2009. China dominated 12% of the global honey sales. Germany was the second largest exporter followed by Mexico. Exported Mexican honey accounted for 7% of the total market. Below is a list of countries exporting by value with a pie chart.

World Exporters of Honey by Country, Market Value, and Estimated Value

World Honey Importers 

Germany was the number one honey importer in 2009. They imported almost a quarter of the available honey, 24%. United States was the world’s second largest honey importer, importing 16% of the market share at an estimated value of 383 million dollars. The United Kingdom was third, France was fourth, and Japan was the fifth. Below is a list of the top ten countries importing honey in the world with estimated value and market share.

World’s Top Importers of Honey by Country, Market Value, and Estimated Value

United States Imports of Honey

While the United States is one of the world’s largest producers of honey, they are also the second largest importer. They buy more honey than the largest exporter of honey sells.  The United States has a unique and diversified honey import profile. The United States imports 19% of their foreign honey from Argentina, spending an estimated value of 54 million dollars in 2010. Vietnam was the second largest source, accounting for 16% of U.S. bought foreign honey in 2010. The U.S. spent an estimated 47 million dollars on Vietnamese honey in 2010. India was the third largest source and Canada was the fourth. Below is a list of the top ten counties that Untied States is buying honey from.

United States Imports of Honey 2010, list by country, estimated value, and market share percentage with pie chart 

16 Responses to “Honey: World Production, Top Exporters, Top Importers, and United States Imports by Country”

  1. It’s clear regarding China and its low-quality honey, but what about the biggest exporter of the good-quality honey? Which country is the biggest gambler in this field statistically? Thank you in advance for the answer.

  2. welcome bhila Reply 08/05/2015 at 06:48

    very good figures.i am looking for market for my honey.am in zimbabwe.

  3. Michael Ewusi-Sekyi Reply 09/12/2014 at 06:50

    I am grateful for this invaluable information. But it is a pity no African country is mentioned as an exporter of honey in your data.

  4. how can i import honey into australia

  5. Wondye Admasu Reply 25/12/2013 at 14:06

    The information is very important for me. Thank you very much for your effort that you did.

  6. Impressed by content and simplicity of the presentention.I see the potential of honey production foe economic empowerment for African countries. the catch is in the quality requirements for Importes. What are the attributes of Quality Honey?

    • Impressed by content and simplicity of your presentation. I see the potential of Honey production for economic empowerment for African countries. The catch is however in the quality requirements of Importers of the product .What are the attributes of good Quality Honey

  7. Greg Aberdeen Reply 17/11/2013 at 08:45

    Hi Guys,

    Just curious as to how Germany can both be a dominant importer and exporter at the same time.

    • Isaac Thompson 06/07/2014 at 19:42

      Good question. I often wondered the same with other products. For example Italy is one of the top importers and exporters of olive oil. It is simply a middle man type role. In the case of Italy, than can rebrand it and sell it as Italian olive oil. They often import from lower SES countries who mass produce the product and export it to higher SES countries. This is a general trend I observed doing 200+ products. Special cases could still exist.

    • I suspect that they import in bulk in order to process into smaller jars and sell via their exports 🙂 clever

  8. Dr D P ABROL Reply 25/12/2012 at 09:04

    The information provided is really useful and needs to be updated at regular intervals. The report should also highlight the quality of honey

    • Isaac Thompson 06/07/2014 at 19:43

      Thanks. It does take substantial time and energy. Since my father and I are both into other endeavors right now, I think this will be the latest update from us.

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