Food and Beverage industry

The Food and Beverage (F&B) sector represents about 14% of the value-added generated by the manufacturing industry in Portugal. This sector covers the entire value chain, fostering the creation of valuable links and synergies between different players.

The sector’s development and the reinforcement of its production capacity have been fostered by a set of industry associations (such as PortugalFoods - Association of the Portuguese Agrifood Sector and FIPA - Federation of Portuguese Agro-food Industries) and R&D centers and specialized collaborative laboratories (namely, Colab4Food and SmartFarm Colab), which are responsible for developing and transferring knowledge to the business.

In addition to cutting-edge research capacities and well-established industry associations, favorable edaphoclimatic conditions and a highly qualified labor force strengthen country's ability to attract FDI. In fact, the Food and Beverage industry in Portugal is marked by the presence of major world players, such as Nestlé, established in Portugal for over 100 years.

Food Industry

The strong commitment to innovation and product differentiation has been driving the development of the Food Industry in Portugal.

The food sector in Portugal benefits from a strong and long-lasting link between agriculture and the food manufacturing industry.

The extensive and rich soils, the weather conditions as well as a large Exclusive Economic Zone (the 3rd largest in the European Union4) are key competitive advantages for Portugal, allowing the production of a wide variety of high-quality products.

The food sector has been fostered by well-known specialized academic and R&D institutions.

These conditions have attracted foreign investment and the creation of a growing number of innovative companies focused on the main trends in this sector, such as robotization, organic farming, new technologies applied to farming and processing, among others.

This sector has a strong export orientation, reaching more than 180 markets all over the world in 20225.

Portugal has won some awards in the area of smart agriculture, such as the startup Agroop that has been recognized as one of the best "AgriTech" companies in Europe by Valuer, in 2019.

Beverage Industry

The international reputation of the beverage industry, combined with climatic conditions and modern production methods, are the main advantages of this subsector in Portugal.

The Beverage Industry is made up of national firms with international recognition, but also several foreign companies with worldwide presence.

The highly qualified labor force, the recognized excellence in terms of R&D infrastructures and the unique endogenous resources (including quality and abundance of water, quality of the vines, hours of sunlight) are some of the key assets the country has to offer.

Portugal produces a varied number of beverages, including water (5,7%), soft drinks (13,5%), beer (22,6%) and wine (54,6%)⁹.

Portugal is worldwide renowned for both the quality and the variety of wine produced, having already been distinguished with several international awards.

Portugal was the 5th largest wine exporter in the EU¹⁰ and the 9th in the world¹¹ in terms of value exported in 2022, being France, USA, UK and Brazil as the main destination markets.

The portuguese agrofood cluster aims to reinforce the active participation of the various institutional and sectoral partners, particularly companies, in the construction of a collective strategy to support innovation.

⁹ INE Portugal (2021), Weight in total beverage production (value) in Portugal in 2021.
¹⁰ International Trade Centre , considering the 27 countries that were part of the European Union in 2022.
¹¹ Data compiled by the United Nations Statistics Division covers approximately 200 countries.