The European coffee sector generated €84.4 billion in direct gross value added and supported around 1.5 million jobs across the EU27 in 2025. The findings come from a report the European Coffee Federation published on June 25, prepared by the London-based consultancy Europe Economics.
Key Facts
- More than 87% of coffee's 1.5 million EU jobs sit in cafes, hotels and restaurants.
- Out-of-home hospitality accounts for €76.5 billion of coffee's €84.4 billion in direct EU value.
- Each euro of coffee imported into the EU generates €11.20 of direct European output.
The report separates two measures. Output captures the broadest measure of coffee-related activity. Gross value added excludes the cost of inputs and lines up more closely with a sector's contribution to GDP.
Europe Economics, a London-based consultancy, built the underlying model. It used input-output analysis to trace coffee demand through trading, roasting, retail and hospitality.
Most of Coffee's EU Value Comes after Import
Coffee itself supplies only the starting input. The report finds that trading, roasting, decaffeination, soluble coffee manufacture, packaging, logistics, retail and hospitality generate most of the sector's value once beans reach Europe.
Out-of-home hospitality and foodservice account for €76.5 billion of the EU27's €84.4 billion in direct GVA.
Out-of-home hospitality accounts for the large majority of coffee's direct value in the EU27, far outweighing roasting, manufacturing, and at-home retail combined. Roasting and manufacturing still make up €5.4 billion of that direct value, more than double the at-home distribution and retail margin.
That's more than nine times the combined contribution of roasting, manufacturing, at-home distribution and retail. Each euro of green coffee imported into the EU27 is associated with an estimated €11.20 of direct European output, per the report's input-output model.
Germany Handles More Than a Third of EU Coffee Imports
Germany received 1.01 million tonnes of coffee from outside the EU in 2025, or 34.4% of the bloc's extra-EU import volume. That's more than any other member state. Most of it arrives through the Port of Hamburg.
The report describes Hamburg as one of the world's leading coffee ports and a transit point for coffee re-exported to other EU countries. Italy followed with 20.7% of extra-EU imports (608,026 tonnes), arriving mainly through Trieste and Genoa. Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands and France rounded out the top six entry points.
Together, the six account for close to 90% of all extra-EU coffee imports.
Producing Countries Rely Heavily on EU Coffee Demand
Brazil supplied 34.2% of the EU's extra-EU coffee imports by volume in 2025. Vietnam followed with a 20% share, reflecting its position as the world's top Robusta producer.
The dependence runs deeper for smaller origins, where EU+ demand can account for the majority of a country's coffee exports:
- Burundi: EU+ demand absorbed around 91% of the country's coffee exports in 2024, equal to 13.2% of its total goods exports.
- Honduras: 12% of the country's total goods exports came from coffee sold into the EU+ in 2024, equivalent to 65.5% of its coffee exports.
- Uganda: Nearly 42% of farming households grow coffee. Around 1.7 million households rely on the crop for their livelihoods, per the Uganda Coffee Development Authority.
