Ice cream production across the European Union expanded again in 2025, reaching 3.44 billion litres. Eurostat reported a 1.9% increase from the previous year, confirming continued momentum within the region’s frozen dessert manufacturing sector, according to new figures from Eurostat.
The latest figures illustrate both the size of the European ice cream market and the varying roles that individual member states play in production and international trade.
Germany remained the EU’s biggest producer, with output of 608 million litres. Italy ranked second at 549 million litres, followed by France with 525 million litres.
Among these three leading producers, Italy achieved the most notable annual improvement. Its production rose by 10% compared with 2024, reinforcing the country’s importance to the EU’s overall ice cream manufacturing base alongside Germany and France.
International activity also strengthened during the year. Extra-EU ice cream exports totalled 289.8 million kg in 2025, an increase of 10% year on year.
France led the bloc’s exports to markets outside the EU, contributing 20% of the total. The Netherlands represented 15%, while Germany and Belgium each accounted for 11%.
Imports from non-EU countries grew as well, climbing 12% during 2025. The simultaneous rise in imports and exports reflects the ongoing international circulation of frozen food products and the complexity of modern food distribution trends.
Against the wider backdrop of food and beverage industry trends, the results demonstrate the scale of an established European category. Annual production above three billion litres, combined with expanding cross-border trade, makes ice cream a significant contributor to the region’s food manufacturing landscape and broader food manufacturing trends.
Output remains concentrated in Europe’s largest manufacturing economies. Germany, Italy and France collectively produced almost half of all ice cream made within the EU, highlighting the influence of established industrial capacity, food processing technology and supply networks.
Although the figures focus on production and trade rather than wider areas such as food and drink industry innovation, food and drink sustainability, food and drink regulations, food and drink packaging, food and drink marketing and food and drink consumer trends, they provide a clear statistical foundation for understanding the sector’s continued development.
