In 2022, Croatia was among the EU countries with the largest share of the food sector in the sales of main industrial products, figures from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, showed on Monday.

Industrial production in the European Union recovered from the COVID-19 crisis in 2021, jumping by 8%, following a 7% decrease in 2020. In 2022, the production growth slowed down to 5%.

Last year, the value of sold industrial production in the EU increased by 19% in nominal terms to €6.2 billion. Increases in production were recorded in all industrial activity groups.

The largest increase was recorded in the manufacturing of metal products, followed by the manufacturing of paper, basic metals, chemicals, and beverages.

Production outsourced from the EU accounted for 4% of volume and 9% of value.

Croatia alongside Spain and the Netherlands

Germany represented a quarter of the value of sold industrial production, and three-quarters together with Italy, France, Spain, Poland and the Netherlands.

In Germany, the food, basic metals and motor vehicles sectors had roughly the same shares in sold industrial production, while in Italy the basic metals and fabricated metal products sector dominated with a third of the value of sales.

The basic metals sector also dominated in Bulgaria, Greece and Slovenia, with a share of 22%.

Greece had the largest share of the food sector in sold industrial production, slightly more than a third. It was followed by Croatia (28%), Spain and the Netherlands (both 27%) and Denmark (24%).

The motor vehicles sector had the largest share in the sales of industrial products in Slovakia (40%), the Czech Republic (27%), Hungary and Romania (both 26%).