In 2025, German growers harvested roughly 45,700 tonnes of bush‑grown berries on about 9,000 hectares. Although the planted area declined by 2 % compared with the previous year, total production rose by 23.5 %, according to the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis). The better weather conditions of 2025-contrasting with a poor harvest in 2024, which was marked by late frosts and drought-were cited as the main reason for the increase. Compared with the six‑year average, overall harvests climbed 13.3 %. This volume surpassed the largest harvest ever recorded since the data series began in 2012; the record of 45,600 tonnes was set in 2021.
Heath berries (Kulturheidelbeere) remained the most important species, covering 3,450 ha (a 1.4 % drop from 2024) which represents about 38 % of the total area and yield. In 2025, 17,300 tonnes were produced, up 14.4 % from the previous year. The next largest crops were red and white currants (9,300 t, +37.3 %) and black currants (5,900 t, +107.4 %). Raspberries, however, decreased by 11.1 % to 6,200 t.
Protected cultivation-mainly greenhouses and other high, walk-in covers-expanded by 2.6 % to 590 ha in 2025, yet the yield fell 2.8 % to just under 6,500 t. Raspberries dominated these protected areas, accounting for 77.4 % of the cultivation; the protected area for raspberries has remained almost flat at 450 ha since 2012.
About one‑third of the total area (32.2 % or 2,900 ha) was devoted to fully organic production. Although this area slipped by 2.6 % from 2024, organic yields surged 43.5 % to 6,000 t, representing 13 % of the overall harvest. Over the previous six‑year average, the organic berry harvest grew 25.4 %. The largest organic harvest was recorded in 2021 with 7,100 t. In organic production, Aronia (870 ha) led the acreage, followed by heath (590 ha) and sea buckthorn (480 ha). The organic harvest of heath berries reached about 1,800 t (+15.6 % from 2024), while Aronia produced roughly 1,500 t, a 194.8 % increase over the preceding year.
