EU agri-food exports reached a value of 120 billion euro in 2013, which made the European Union the world's number one exporter of agricultural and food products.
At the same, the EU remains by far the world's biggest importer of agricultural goods, with imports valued at 101.5 billion euro, so the net agricultural trade balance reached to a surplus of 18.5 billion euro, said the European Commission in a report on Monday.
While the EU is a renowned exporter of high value-added final products, the export growth in 2013 can be largely attributed to commodities, notably wheat and barley, with exports to Middle East-North African countries booming in 2013, it noted.
Overall, total agri-food exports increased the most to China, which, together with Saudi Arabia continued to be the fastest-growing exports markets for the EU, it added