Steady growth continues for Dutch food industry

The Dutch food industry continues to perform well. In the second quarter of 2025, turnover rose by 8.3 percent compared to the same period a year earlier. Not a one-off spike, just a solid continuation of the upward trend already seen in the first quarter, when growth reached 8.8 percent.

What’s driving that growth? Mostly higher selling prices. Buyers had to dig a little deeper into their pockets. Meanwhile, business owners remain cautiously optimistic about what lies ahead. That’s according to an analysis of recent figures from CBS, compiled by our editorial team.

Exports still leading the way

The domestic market wasn’t the main engine this time, exports were. While local sales increased by 3.3 percent, demand from abroad shot up by 12.5 percent. April stood out in particular: with 11.8 percent turnover growth, it was the strongest month of the quarter. Looking at the first half of the year, average turnover growth came in at 8.6 percent. Exports accounted for a 12.2 percent increase over that period. Domestic sales were more moderate, with a 4.2 percent rise.

Prices up across nearly all segments

On average, selling prices in the second quarter were 4.3 percent higher than the year before. Domestic buyers saw a 2.9 percent increase. International customers faced a more substantial rise, up 5.4 percent. The dairy industry led the pack, with a price hike of 7.6 percent. Close behind were the animal feed industry at 5.7 percent and fish processing at 5.6 percent. Slaughterhouses and meat processors also raised their prices, by 3.2 percent. In the edible oils and fats segment, prices went up by 2.1 percent. For bread and bakery products, the increase was 2 percent. The fruit and vegetable processing segment showed only a slight rise of 0.2 percent. Only one segment saw a decline: the flour industry, where prices fell by 3.1 percent.

Growth in business numbers driven by bakery sector

By the end of June, the food industry counted a total of 7,880 businesses. That’s 100 more than the previous quarter. The strongest growth was seen in the bread and bakery segment. With 4,205 businesses, it has become by far the largest subsector in the industry. In fact, 53.3 percent of all food companies operate in this area. At the other end of the spectrum lies the edible oils and fats sector, making up just 0.9 percent of the total.

Rise in bankruptcies

Not every part of the sector saw growth. In the second quarter, 15 companies went bankrupt—more than twice as many as the same period last year, when there were only 7. What stood out: 12 of these bankruptcies occurred in the bread and bakery sector.

Business owners remain confident

Despite the bankruptcies, confidence in the future remains. At the start of the third quarter, there were 6.1 percent more entrepreneurs optimistic about their turnover than pessimistic. And the outlook on pricing? Still positive. 14.9 percent of business owners expected their selling prices to increase in the third quarter compared to the second.