Import/export HS code 21: Miscellaneous food products
Various food items and preparations not classified elsewhere, including extracts, essences, and concentrates
Why this is important if you are looking for potential customers in the UK:
- It helps you understand the market size for your product in the UK.
- It provides you with a list of potential leads who have bought similar products.
* UK only, last 24 months analysed
Imports by country
What this shows: Import market volume by exporter country into the UK.
Top 5 values
| Country | £ |
|---|---|
| Netherlands | 1,461,188,112 |
| Germany | 932,117,527 |
| Belgium | 662,605,792 |
| France | 591,598,134 |
| Ireland | 548,085,972 |
Countries rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month volume, right side by second 12-month volume, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Country | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands | 758,813,179 | 702,374,933 | -56,438,246 |
| Germany | 453,772,123 | 478,345,404 | +24,573,281 |
| Belgium | 326,580,633 | 336,025,159 | +9,444,526 |
| France | 301,384,294 | 290,213,840 | -11,170,454 |
| Ireland | 279,934,967 | 268,151,005 | -11,783,962 |
| Spain | 226,973,872 | 281,807,450 | +54,833,578 |
| Italy | 256,268,573 | 250,978,525 | -5,290,048 |
| Denmark | 214,540,360 | 192,469,326 | -22,071,034 |
| Poland | 199,431,931 | 187,242,789 | -12,189,142 |
| United States | 135,821,814 | 125,940,453 | -9,881,361 |
Imports by country of origin
What this shows: Import volume by production origin country. Differences from exporter-country data can indicate re-export routes.
Top 5 values
| Origin | £ |
|---|---|
| Germany | 1,115,307,152 |
| Netherlands | 995,261,362 |
| Italy | 592,822,733 |
| France | 576,807,450 |
| Spain | 535,232,614 |
Country of origin rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Origin countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month import value, right side by second 12-month import value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Origin | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | 552,933,222 | 562,373,930 | +9,440,708 |
| Netherlands | 527,325,328 | 467,936,034 | -59,389,294 |
| Italy | 299,509,663 | 293,313,070 | -6,196,593 |
| France | 287,587,502 | 289,219,948 | +1,632,446 |
| Spain | 239,910,087 | 295,322,527 | +55,412,440 |
| Belgium | 208,331,234 | 231,281,235 | +22,950,001 |
| Poland | 220,048,250 | 212,449,336 | -7,598,914 |
| Denmark | 218,024,309 | 197,008,321 | -21,015,988 |
| Ireland | 208,121,478 | 187,779,509 | -20,341,969 |
| United States | 150,145,378 | 132,156,766 | -17,988,612 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Inner London - West | 351 |
| Inner London - East | 325 |
| Outer London - West and North West | 322 |
| Outer London - East and North East | 234 |
| Greater Manchester | 209 |
UK regions rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: UK regions are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month importer count, right side by second 12-month importer count, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| UK region | First 12m | Second 12m | Delta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inner London - West | 273 | 258 | -15 |
| Inner London - East | 252 | 256 | +4 |
| Outer London - West and North West | 259 | 252 | -7 |
| Outer London - East and North East | 188 | 184 | -4 |
| Greater Manchester | 171 | 134 | -37 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 135 | 127 | -8 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 141 | 132 | -9 |
| West Midlands | 117 | 110 | -7 |
| Surrey, East and West Sussex | 107 | 105 | -2 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 94 | 92 | -2 |
Import volume by transport
What this shows: Import value by transport mode used to bring goods into the UK.
Top 5 values
| Transport | £ |
|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 5,004,037,198 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 2,591,775,527 |
| Other | 300,976,653 |
| Air transport | 262,950,690 |
| Road transport | 26,434,039 |
Transport rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Transport modes are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month import value, right side by second 12-month import value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Transport | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 2,577,247,857 | 2,426,789,341 | -150,458,516 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 1,247,425,736 | 1,344,349,791 | +96,924,055 |
| Other | 151,510,165 | 149,466,488 | -2,043,677 |
| Air transport | 130,437,555 | 132,513,135 | +2,075,580 |
| Road transport | 11,531,097 | 14,902,942 | +3,371,845 |
| Rail transport | 305,610 | 297,315 | -8,295 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Dover | 1,393,870,976 |
| Immingham Docks | 1,278,858,800 |
| London | 710,458,033 |
| Eurotunnel | 659,159,222 |
| Felixstowe | 619,290,703 |
Port rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Ports are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month import value, right side by second 12-month import value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Port | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dover | 713,773,988 | 680,096,988 | -33,677,000 |
| Immingham Docks | 643,072,518 | 635,786,282 | -7,286,236 |
| London | 337,845,221 | 372,612,812 | +34,767,591 |
| Eurotunnel | 334,266,888 | 324,892,334 | -9,374,554 |
| Felixstowe | 336,450,615 | 282,840,088 | -53,610,527 |
| Liverpool Docks | 259,900,818 | 242,727,156 | -17,173,662 |
| Hull | 274,092,089 | 213,395,750 | -60,696,339 |
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 164,993,234 | 263,057,041 | +98,063,807 |
| London Gateway Port | 170,636,514 | 171,301,451 | +664,937 |
| Southampton | 161,473,004 | 175,371,519 | +13,898,515 |
Importer companies by SIC division
What this shows: Industry breakdown (SIC divisions) of importing companies.
Top 5 values
| SIC | Companies |
|---|---|
| Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 1658 |
| Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 951 |
| Manufacture of food products | 600 |
| Food and beverage service activities | 458 |
| Office administrative, office support and other business support activities | 144 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2026-01 | 1148 |
| 2025-11 | 1248 |
| 2025-10 | 1247 |
| 2025-09 | 1220 |
| 2025-08 | 1211 |
Top importers
What this shows: Companies with the highest number of months traded for this HS code.
| Company | Months traded |
|---|---|
| NESTLE UK LTD. | 120 |
| ABF GRAIN PRODUCTS LIMITED | 120 |
| PETTY, WOOD & CO. LIMITED | 120 |
| WANIS LIMITED | 120 |
| W.WING YIP PLC | 120 |
| VITABIOTICS LIMITED | 120 |
| HOO HING HOLDINGS LIMITED | 120 |
| TAZAKI FOODS LIMITED | 120 |
| AB WORLD FOODS LIMITED | 120 |
| K.T.C. (EDIBLES) LIMITED | 120 |
Importer company size by revenue band
What this shows: Distribution of importers across company revenue bands.
Top 5 values
| Revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| 1m-15m | 1419 |
| 0-1m | 1246 |
| 54m+ | 531 |
| 15m-54m | 331 |
| Other | 214 |
Import seasonality
What this shows: Average monthly import pattern from historical data.
Exports by country
What this shows: Export market volume by destination country from the UK.
Top 5 values
| Country | £ |
|---|---|
| Ireland | 741,296,411 |
| Netherlands | 474,075,524 |
| Germany | 400,548,575 |
| France | 384,495,375 |
| United States | 236,685,874 |
Export countries rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Destination countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export volume, right side by second 12-month export volume, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Country | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 376,709,140 | 364,587,271 | -12,121,869 |
| Netherlands | 267,011,761 | 207,063,763 | -59,947,998 |
| Germany | 216,593,992 | 183,954,583 | -32,639,409 |
| France | 198,624,545 | 185,870,830 | -12,753,715 |
| United States | 113,547,582 | 123,138,292 | +9,590,710 |
| China | 107,302,466 | 114,084,029 | +6,781,563 |
| Spain | 66,098,382 | 65,344,806 | -753,576 |
| Australia | 70,006,925 | 54,537,587 | -15,469,338 |
| Sweden | 51,874,788 | 55,599,907 | +3,725,119 |
| United Arab Emirates | 50,414,986 | 50,621,017 | +206,031 |
Exports by country of origin
What this shows: Export volume by production origin country. For re-exports, indicates where goods originated before UK export.
Top 5 values
| Origin | £ |
|---|---|
| XI | 101,219,848 |
| Ireland | 11,353,358 |
| Netherlands | 6,131,734 |
| France | 5,278,121 |
| Italy | 2,396,385 |
Export origin countries rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Origin countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export value, right side by second 12-month export value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Origin | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| XI | 50,096,989 | 51,122,859 | +1,025,870 |
| Ireland | 6,195,093 | 5,158,265 | -1,036,828 |
| Netherlands | 3,458,969 | 2,672,765 | -786,204 |
| France | 2,777,532 | 2,500,589 | -276,943 |
| Italy | 1,437,319 | 959,066 | -478,253 |
| Poland | 1,146,273 | 913,808 | -232,465 |
| Belgium | 945,356 | 890,080 | -55,276 |
| Canada | 822,048 | 608,372 | -213,676 |
| Germany | 811,112 | 611,513 | -199,599 |
| Spain | 658,555 | 646,847 | -11,708 |
Export volume by transport
What this shows: Export value by transport mode used to ship goods from the UK.
Top 5 values
| Transport | £ |
|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 2,670,434,750 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 1,619,609,947 |
| Air transport | 252,211,958 |
| Other | 178,220,161 |
| Rail transport | 3,479,872 |
Export transport rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Transport modes are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export value, right side by second 12-month export value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Transport | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 1,374,785,770 | 1,295,648,980 | -79,136,790 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 850,817,620 | 768,792,327 | -82,025,293 |
| Air transport | 126,864,438 | 125,347,520 | -1,516,918 |
| Other | 91,514,333 | 86,705,828 | -4,808,505 |
| Rail transport | 1,337,555 | 2,142,317 | +804,762 |
| Road transport | 1,138,564 | 16,932 | -1,121,632 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 1,351,513,947 |
| London Gateway Port | 521,631,972 |
| Liverpool Docks | 439,194,475 |
| Immingham Docks | 293,429,322 |
| Southampton | 288,663,439 |
Export port rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Ports are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export value, right side by second 12-month export value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Port | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 696,112,693 | 655,401,254 | -40,711,439 |
| London Gateway Port | 242,240,135 | 279,391,837 | +37,151,702 |
| Liverpool Docks | 261,413,531 | 177,780,944 | -83,632,587 |
| Immingham Docks | 151,483,020 | 141,946,302 | -9,536,718 |
| Southampton | 136,592,022 | 152,071,417 | +15,479,395 |
| Dover | 151,304,096 | 99,736,520 | -51,567,576 |
| Holyhead | 112,521,379 | 123,388,647 | +10,867,268 |
| Felixstowe | 117,334,662 | 93,917,076 | -23,417,586 |
| 000 | 91,508,899 | 85,629,662 | -5,879,237 |
| Hull | 97,176,906 | 75,561,679 | -21,615,227 |
Related HS codes
What this shows: Sibling or child HS codes in the same classification branch.
Quick facts
HS code: 21
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: Various food items and preparations not classified elsewhere, including extracts, essences, and concentrates