Import/export HS code 291631: Benzoic acid, its salts, and esters
A common preservative and chemical used in food, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals
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 | 13,397,246 |
| China | 4,889,634 |
| Germany | 1,570,707 |
| Estonia | 1,375,282 |
| Belgium | 511,023 |
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 | 7,375,106 | 6,022,140 | -1,352,966 |
| China | 3,055,159 | 1,834,475 | -1,220,684 |
| Germany | 986,121 | 584,586 | -401,535 |
| Estonia | 852,305 | 522,977 | -329,328 |
| Belgium | 257,655 | 253,368 | -4,287 |
| France | 288,398 | 170,167 | -118,231 |
| Switzerland | 198,544 | 141,687 | -56,857 |
| Italy | 174,925 | 121,069 | -53,856 |
| Ireland | 153,161 | 66,929 | -86,232 |
| Finland | 117,089 | 97,505 | -19,584 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| Netherlands | 13,185,588 |
| China | 5,505,636 |
| Estonia | 2,104,987 |
| Italy | 736,158 |
| United States | 540,068 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands | 7,321,221 | 5,864,367 | -1,456,854 |
| China | 3,433,529 | 2,072,107 | -1,361,422 |
| Estonia | 1,254,221 | 850,766 | -403,455 |
| Italy | 345,799 | 390,359 | +44,560 |
| United States | 332,588 | 207,480 | -125,108 |
| France | 204,696 | 91,173 | -113,523 |
| India | 111,681 | 75,651 | -36,030 |
| Germany | 84,368 | 46,797 | -37,571 |
| Poland | 85,965 | 27,706 | -58,259 |
| Ireland | 77,715 | 32,736 | -44,979 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Greater Manchester | 13 |
| Inner London - West | 7 |
| Cheshire | 6 |
| Suffolk | 5 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 4 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greater Manchester | 12 | 10 | -2 |
| Inner London - West | 6 | 6 | +0 |
| Cheshire | 5 | 5 | +0 |
| Suffolk | 5 | 2 | -3 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 4 | 2 | -2 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 3 | 2 | -1 |
| Essex | 3 | 4 | +1 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 2 | 4 | +2 |
| Outer London - West and North West | 3 | 3 | +0 |
| West Midlands | 3 | 4 | +1 |
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) | 12,648,066 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 9,848,900 |
| Air transport | 799,135 |
| Other | 485,475 |
| Road transport | 8,610 |
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) | 7,041,547 | 5,606,519 | -1,435,028 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 5,859,331 | 3,989,569 | -1,869,762 |
| Air transport | 575,212 | 223,923 | -351,289 |
| Other | 230,136 | 255,339 | +25,203 |
| Road transport | 7,700 | 910 | -6,790 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Felixstowe | 8,669,334 |
| Hull | 4,081,820 |
| Immingham Docks | 3,998,364 |
| Dover | 1,238,271 |
| Harwich | 848,203 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Felixstowe | 4,981,094 | 3,688,240 | -1,292,854 |
| Hull | 2,416,254 | 1,665,566 | -750,688 |
| Immingham Docks | 2,235,885 | 1,762,479 | -473,406 |
| Dover | 606,472 | 631,799 | +25,327 |
| Harwich | 504,227 | 343,976 | -160,251 |
| London | 172,635 | 498,845 | +326,210 |
| Thamesport | 287,002 | 232,358 | -54,644 |
| 000 | 230,136 | 255,339 | +25,203 |
| Middlesbrough | 296,095 | 177,559 | -118,536 |
| Eurotunnel | 278,459 | 144,411 | -134,048 |
Importer companies by SIC division
What this shows: Industry breakdown (SIC divisions) of importing companies.
Top 5 values
| SIC | Companies |
|---|---|
| Manufacture of chemicals and chemical products | 41 |
| Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 38 |
| Manufacture of food products | 6 |
| Manufacture of basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations | 4 |
| Office administrative, office support and other business support activities | 4 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2026-01 | 22 |
| 2025-11 | 21 |
| 2025-10 | 20 |
| 2025-09 | 18 |
| 2025-08 | 27 |
Top importers
What this shows: Companies with the highest number of months traded for this HS code.
Importer company size by revenue band
What this shows: Distribution of importers across company revenue bands.
Top 5 values
| Revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| 54m+ | 46 |
| 1m-15m | 27 |
| 15m-54m | 14 |
| 0-1m | 5 |
| Other | 5 |
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 | 1,626,826 |
| Spain | 1,564,901 |
| Germany | 1,341,464 |
| Netherlands | 1,240,300 |
| Poland | 1,212,403 |
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 | 844,906 | 781,920 | -62,986 |
| Spain | 902,743 | 662,158 | -240,585 |
| Germany | 700,242 | 641,222 | -59,020 |
| Netherlands | 771,347 | 468,953 | -302,394 |
| Poland | 1,102,349 | 110,054 | -992,295 |
| United States | 549,253 | 443,828 | -105,425 |
| Philippines | 418,769 | 342,562 | -76,207 |
| France | 443,282 | 176,964 | -266,318 |
| Greece | 94,597 | 213,190 | +118,593 |
| Italy | 134,877 | 149,436 | +14,559 |
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 | £ |
|---|---|
| Netherlands | 73,481 |
| XI | 10,284 |
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 £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands | 72,035 | 1,446 | -70,589 |
| XI | 5,517 | 4,767 | -750 |
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) | 7,872,262 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 3,349,108 |
| Air transport | 345,385 |
| Other | 83,856 |
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) | 4,704,024 | 3,168,238 | -1,535,786 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 1,921,402 | 1,427,706 | -493,696 |
| Air transport | 192,870 | 152,515 | -40,355 |
| Other | 77,643 | 6,213 | -71,430 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 4,576,875 |
| Immingham Docks | 1,272,144 |
| London Gateway Port | 1,230,663 |
| Liverpool Docks | 1,153,503 |
| Southampton | 841,529 |
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 | 2,908,358 | 1,668,517 | -1,239,841 |
| Immingham Docks | 865,678 | 406,466 | -459,212 |
| London Gateway Port | 916,564 | 314,099 | -602,465 |
| Liverpool Docks | 796,221 | 357,282 | -438,939 |
| Southampton | 176,472 | 665,057 | +488,585 |
| Hull | 392,348 | 326,734 | -65,614 |
| Felixstowe | 280,811 | 218,979 | -61,832 |
| Heysham | 82,103 | 326,551 | +244,448 |
| Portsmouth | 87,905 | 166,675 | +78,770 |
| Holyhead | 66,702 | 136,443 | +69,741 |
Quick facts
HS code: 291631
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: A common preservative and chemical used in food, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals