Chocolate appears to be weathering the storm: Last year, German producers increased production by 1.7% to 1.2 million tonnes, despite inflation and a weakening economy, says the chocolate association. the confectionery industry in Bonn. Per capita consumption in Germany is estimated to have increased slightly to 9.56 kilograms. At Easter, every inhabitant of Germany will be able to eat more than one chocolate bunnie: the industry produced 108 million chocolate bunnies for sale in the country.
The confectionery industry has not escaped inflation: this is particularly evident from the fact that the value of chocolate products produced in Germany increased faster than production – by 4.5% and reached around 6.2 Billions of Euro’s. Exports have particularly increased. To all appearances, the decades-long debate over healthy eating has not had much of an effect on chocolate consumption in Germany.
By way of comparison: at the beginning of the 1980s, the association estimated the consumption of chocolate per inhabitant in the former Federal Republic of Germany at 6.5 kg. However, according to a representative of the Federal Association of the German Confectionery Industry (BDSI), in recent decades the definition of “chocolate products” has changed.
According to BDSI, milk chocolate remains the most popular, although more and more manufacturers are now producing dark chocolate with a high cocoa content. The range of vegan chocolate options has also increased.
Last year, the confectionery industry suffered from serious supply problems; for example, in some supermarkets in Munich, chocolate Santa Clauses were mostly sold before Christmas. “Since the beginning of 2023, the supply problem has further improved,” the spokesperson said in this regard. However, this sector, like other industries, is suffering from rising energy and commodity prices.
In 2022, according to the association, more than 200 companies in the German confectionery industry faced “a spiral of rising costs and, in some cases, massive problems and disruptions in international supply chains. unprecedented since World War II.
