Italian wine exports fell 3% in the second quarter of 2026

Agri-food trade returns to growth

The CREAgritrend bulletin, published on November 2 by CREA’s Research Center for Policies and Bioeconomy, described the Italian agri-food sector as broadly stable in the second quarter after a setback in the first three months of the year. Agri-food exports rose 1.9% from the same period of 2025, while imports decreased by 1.6%.¹

Italy’s gross domestic product increased by 0.2% from the previous quarter and by 1% year on year. On a quarterly basis, agricultural value added fell 0.2% and industry declined 0.5%, while services grew 0.4%. Compared with the second quarter of 2025, agriculture was up 0.4%, industry 0.5% and services 1.1%.¹

Final national consumption and gross fixed investment each rose 0.3% from the preceding quarter. Household expenditure on durable goods increased by 0.9%, continuing a pattern that CREA said had persisted for several quarters.¹

Beverage output rises as turnover weakens

Food manufacturing output was almost unchanged, rising 0.1% year on year and underperforming manufacturing overall. Beverage production increased by 4%, but the sector’s turnover fell 2.7%: domestic beverage sales declined 0.4% and foreign turnover dropped 7.8%.¹

Food-industry turnover decreased by 4.7%, primarily because of a 6.5% contraction in the domestic market, while foreign sales of food products rose 3%. The combination of higher beverage production and lower revenue indicated a more difficult commercial quarter, particularly in export markets.¹

Wine and olive oil lose ground

Performance varied substantially among product categories. Wine exports fell 3%, confectionery exports declined 6%, and olive oil recorded the largest decrease at 15%. By contrast, dairy exports grew 2.7%, prepared meats 2.9% and cereal-based products 2.1%.¹

Export results were also uneven by destination. Italian sales to the United Kingdom rose 2.7%, those to Switzerland increased 2.1%, and exports to France gained 1.5%. Shipments to Germany fell 1.9%, while exports to the United States declined 2.9%.¹

Imports show mixed demand

Spain remained Italy’s largest supplier. Imports from France decreased 4.9%, those from Germany fell 5.6%, and purchases from the Netherlands dropped 12.1%. Imports from Austria, however, rose 7.3%, while those from Brazil increased 3.2%.¹

By product group, Italy raised imports of fish products by 6.8% and oils and fats by 4.4%. Purchases of fresh and frozen meat, dairy products, cocoa and raw coffee declined. CREA did not attribute these movements to a single cause, presenting them as evidence of selective demand and uneven sector performance.¹

Sector sentiment and wine consumption

CREA’s analysis of content published by specialist websites between June 15 and September 22 found that positive assessments represented 64% of the total, 2.6 percentage points more than in the previous quarter. Negative assessments accounted for 34.7%, leaving the sector’s measured sentiment predominantly positive despite pressure on some export categories.¹

A separate survey in the bulletin covered 1,038 Italian consumers. Of those questioned, 94.4% said they drank wine at least occasionally. Taste was a purchasing criterion for 82% of respondents, while denomination of origin was cited by 73.7%; 41.2% said they would be prepared to spend more than €20 on a bottle.¹