Agri-Food Industry

A strong and resilient industry

With revenue of over €168.2 bn and employing around 559,700 people, the agri-food industry represents 23.8% of the manufacturing sector in Spain.

Spain is the fourth agri-food power in Europe and tenth in the world. Due to the quality of its products and its extensive range of items, the Spanish agri-food industry is highly regarded internationally.

The dynamic nature of Spanish agri-food exports, showing continuous years of surplus, and representing almost 20% of the country's total exports, have made the industry the fourth-ranked European exporter and the seventh worldwide in these products. 

Spanish agricultural production is extensive and diverse. Being one of the European and Worldwide leaders in agricultural land devoted to organic farming, it is also a leader in crops as olive oil, citrus fruits and fresh vegetables.

Nearly 30,000 companies in the industry currently export food and drink from Spain, with internationalisation being one of the main pillars of its strong position and growth.

In the case of Spain, the food and drink/tourism/cuisine link guarantees a high level of consumption and promotes the country brand, where agri-food production has become an essential part of the country's culture and traditions.

Alongside this tradition, the industry is undergoing a disruptive and decisive transformation towards digitalisation and sustainability to face new challenges in the form of climate change and adapting to new consumer trends. Spanish Technology Centres are world leaders in specific areas ranging from developing new ingredients to new high-quality protein sources, enhancing nutritional properties and precision agriculture. In recent years, Spain is developing a solid business ecosystem across the entire agri-food value chain.

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Inés Lucía

Project Manager

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Why invest

in Spain’s
agri-food industry?

Agri-food is a key industry in the Spanish economy. It is strong and resilient and is the country's top-ranked industry.

Characteristic

Strong Business Ecosystem

Spain is home to nearly 30,000 agri-food companies, ranging from innovative start-ups and SMEs to major multinational corporations, covering the entire value chain.

Characteristic

Access to High-Quality Raw Materials

Spain has the second-largest area of arable land in the European Union, supporting a large-scale, diverse, and highly productive agricultural sector.

Characteristic

International competitiveness

Spain is the fourth-largest exporter of agri-food products in the European Union and maintains a positive agri-food trade balance exceeding €18 billion.

Characteristic

Innovation Leadership

Spain benefits from a dynamic innovation ecosystem, supported by more than 20 leading technology centers, 50 universities, specialized industry associations, science parks, incubators, accelerators, and a growing network of agri-food start-ups.

Characteristic

Skilled and Competitive Workforce

The food, beverage, and tobacco industry employs 561,700 people (Q1 2025 data). The sector remains highly competitive, with labor costs per unit of added value approximately 18% below the EU-27 average.

Characteristic

World-Class Connectivity

Spain offers outstanding logistics and transport infrastructure, including more than 17,550 km of highways, international airports, and 46 major commercial ports. More than 60% of Spanish exports are destined for EU markets, reinforcing Spain’s role as a strategic gateway to Europe, North Africa, and Latin America.

Characteristic

Digital Transformation

The sector is committed to building a more efficient and sustainable production model. Spain is at the forefront of precision agriculture, robotics, and AI-powered soil monitoring technologies, helping improve productivity while addressing climate-related challenges.

What are the best
investment opportunities?

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Organic production

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Agritech

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Foodtech

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Spain ranks first in Europe in terms of land dedicated to organic farming (3.12 million hectares), according to Ecovalia data, and sixth worldwide.

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The area dedicated to organic farming in Spain has experienced extraordinary growth of 126% over the last 10 years (2014-2024 period)Andalusia (49.3%), Castile-La Mancha (16.7%) and Catalonia (8.6%) continue to be the regions with the largest organic area in the country.

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In recent years, this segment has become firmly established in Spain:

The number of organic business activities has risen to 66,687 (an increase of 25% over the last 5 years). The industrial sector comprises 6,174 processors and 11,498 establishments. 86% of the organic industry is focused on products of plant origin (particularly oils, beverages, and fruit and vegetable processing), while 14% is dedicated to animal-based production

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The organic products market in Spain has already reached €3.25 billion, maintaining the country in 10th place in the global ranking by consumption volume. 

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The competent authorities promote organic production as a strategic pillar under the European Green Deal, although the sector is calling for a larger dedicated budget to achieve the EU target of 25% organic farmland by 2030

Europe /Privileged Strategic Location

Europe

19.5

Million Ha

The sector is entering a stage of maturity after years of sustained expansion. 



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Spain

3.12

Million Ha

Spain leads the continent with more than 3 million certified hectares:

12.3% of Spain’s total Utilised Agricultural Area (UAA) is already organic. Andalusia and Murcia stand out, with more than 30% of their agricultural land under organic management. 

+21% growth over the last 5 years (2019-2024). 

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3.7%

of Europe’s farmland is organic (EU average 9.16%)

Top 10 countries have over 10% of agricultural land under organic management.

Ranking of countries with more than 10% of land under organic management According to the latest Ecovalia report, the countries with significant penetration of the organic model across their total UAA are:

  1. Austria: 27.0 %.
  2. Spain: 12.3 %.
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+1%

growth since 2021 
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Organic farming continues to grow in Spain, adding 316,550 more hectares in 2023 — a 12% increase compared to the previous year.

Growth of Organic Utilised Agricultural Area (UAA) in Spain 

It is important to highlight that, when considering the total certified organic area (which includes forest land with livestock grazing), the figure in Spain rises to 3.12 million hectares, having experienced a much more aggressive growth of 126% over the last decade.


Source: FiBL Statistics, Eurostat Statistics Explained and E covalia

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Spain is one of the main agricultural production markets in Europe: It is the first country in the EU-28 in terms of Agricultural GDP (2.4%) from agriculture and the second in terms of agriculture area.

Spain enjoys a great knowledge in agriculture. Together with multinational companies, technological start-ups and SMEs are developing multiple solution to promote a highly efficient and sustainable agrifood system.

By region, Andalusia, Castilla León and Castilla La Mancha lead the way in terms of agricultural production value. The main crops, in this order, are cereals (barley, wheat and corn), olives for mills, vines, sunflowers for industrial use, tree fruits and nuts (almonds, oranges and mandarins mainly) and vegetables.

The global challenge of producing more food sustainably is also present in the Spanish agricultural industry. The high levels of digitalisation and technology that are increasingly required in this industry to increase productivity, improve efficiency and adapt production represent a great opportunity for investment.

An important ecosystem is being built in Spain around agricultural innovation. Multiple solutions are being developed to promote a highly efficient and sustainable agri-food system. These include:

·         Green biotechnology: soil regeneration, seed optimisation, etc.

·         Automated crop systems: Software and hardware for agriculture.

·         Robotics applied to agriculture.

·         Water management and new cultivation systems: Vertical farming, indoor farming, hydroponics and aquaponics, among others.

·         Intensive cultivation systems.

·         Marketplaces for Agriculture. 

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Boosted by this important industry, in recent years Spain has become one of the few "foodtech" nations worldwide with innovations that cover the entire agri-food value chain.

Spanish Technology Centres are world leaders in specific areas ranging from developing new ingredients, enhancing nutritional properties, using new conservation technology, industrial process scale-up of more innovative solutions and reducing the impact of packaging. Incubators and accelerators play a key role in this development of the entrepreneurial ecosystem

Some of the innovations taking place are:

·         New food sources: plant-based, fermentation, biosynthesis and insects.

·         New products: new ingredients, vegetarian and vegan products.

·         Packaging. Bio-based coating material for food packaging.

·         Traceability. Blockchain technology to ensure supply chain transparency.

·         Food Safety.

·         Food waste management and circular economy. Upcycling or reuse of foodstuffs.

·         Robotics and analitycs platforms.

Leading regions
for the agri-food industry

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Main food-producing regions

 

By turnover

Mapa sectors regions
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Icon Sales Sales: 2,7%

Find out more about Extremadura Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 8,2%

Find out more about Valencia Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 5,3%

Find out more about Murcia Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 0,5%

Find out more about Balearic Islands Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 1,8%

Find out more about La Rioja Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 1,7%

Find out more about Asturias Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 1,2%

Find out more about Canary Islands Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 1,3%

Find out more about Cantabria Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 7,5%

Find out more about Galicia Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 15,3%

Find out more about Andalusia Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 3,9%

Find out more about Aragon Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 8,5%

Find out more about Castille and Leon Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 6,9%

Find out more about Castilla-La Mancha Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 4,8%

Find out more about Madrid Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 3,5%

Find out more about Basque Country Arrow icon
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Icon Sales Sales: 23,7%

Find out more about Catalonia Arrow icon
>20
10%-20%
5%-10%
<5%
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