Market evolution: Dried glands and extracts (CN 3001) — 2015–2025

Introduction

This report examines the evolution of EU external trade in CN 3001 — a heading that covers dried glands and organs for organo-therapeutic uses, glandular extracts, heparin and its salts, and other animal or human substances prepared for therapeutic or prophylactic purposes. The product group sits within the broader pharmaceutical products chapter (CN 30) and bundles two sub-headings: CN 300120 (glandular extracts) and CN 300190 (dried glands, heparin, and other n.e.s. preparations). Over the 2015–2025 period, the EU's trade in this product category has undergone a pronounced contraction in both import and export values, a dramatic shift in the quantity–price composition of flows, and a significant reconfiguration of trade partners and production structures. The analysis that follows draws on EU-level trade data with non-EU countries and interprets the main dynamics observed. Readers can explore the underlying figures on the EU Trade Dashboard for CN 3001.

1. A Declining Trade Volume Offset by Soaring Unit Values

1.1 EU imports have contracted far more steeply than exports

Between 2015 and 2025, total EU imports of CN 3001 fell from €1,041 million to €643 million (–38.3%), while exports declined from €582 million to €404 million (–30.5%). As a result, the EU's trade deficit in this product narrowed substantially, from –€459 million in 2015 to –€238 million in 2025 — an improvement of 48.1%. The trade balance reached its best (least negative) level in 2025, and its worst point around 2022, when it stood at –€675 million. The overall picture is one of a market that has structurally shrunk in value terms, but where the import contraction has outpaced the export contraction.

(Source: General Overview)

1.2 Import volumes collapsed while unit values surged

The most striking feature of the import side is the divergence between quantity and price. EU import volumes plummeted from 3,676 tonnes in 2015 to just 765 tonnes in 2025 (–79.2%), meaning that only one-fifth of the original physical volume is now entering the EU. Yet over the same period, the average import unit value rose from €283,049/t to €839,354/t (+196.5%). This pattern is strongly suggestive of a shift toward higher-value, more processed products within the same tariff heading, as well as possible supply-chain restructuring (e.g. upstream processing moving into the EU or to other origins not captured in this heading's raw material flows).

On the export side, volumes remained comparatively resilient at around 685 tonnes in 2025 versus 711 tonnes in 2015 (–3.7%), but unit values declined from €817,391/t to €588,793/t (–28.0%). The combination of stable volumes and falling prices points to intensifying competitive pressure or a compositional shift toward lower-value export segments.

(Source: General Overview)

1.3 EU production value has more than quadrupled

While external trade has been declining, EU domestic production value for CN 3001 surged from €764 million to €3,072 million over the period, an increase of 302.2%. Production peaked at €3,556 million in an intermediate year. This explosive growth in production, juxtaposed with falling imports, strongly suggests that the EU has substantially increased its domestic capacity — particularly in heparin processing and related high-value pharmaceutical intermediates — reducing its dependence on external suppliers. The production volumes data confirms this structural transformation.

2. Partner Concentration, Diversification, and the Singapore–China Axis

2.1 Singapore and China dominate EU imports, but both have declined

Throughout the period, Singapore and China have been the two largest sources of EU imports in this product group, together accounting for the majority of inbound flows. In 2015, Singapore supplied €501 million and China €205 million. By 2025, Singapore had fallen to €277 million (–44.7%) and China to €145 million (–29.3%). The United States, the third-largest supplier at €259 million in 2015, also declined to €160 million (–38.3%). Among smaller suppliers, the United Kingdom saw the steepest proportional decline (–79.0%), while Serbia was the only partner to register a meaningful increase (+40.9%), albeit from a very low base.

(Source: Top partners)

The role of Singapore as an import hub is noteworthy. Given that Singapore is not a primary producer of porcine-derived heparin (the dominant product in 300190), its large share likely reflects transhipment or re-export activity, with upstream sourcing from China and other Asian producers routed through Singaporean trading or processing intermediaries.

2.2 Export destinations have shifted, with China emerging as a growth market

On the export side, Singapore has also been the largest EU export partner, declining from €373 million in 2015 to €200 million in 2025 (–46.4%). However, the most notable growth story is China: EU exports to China rose from just €2.4 million to €9.6 million (+304.9%), and at their peak reached €117 million. Switzerland (+30.2%) and Japan (–7.9%, but relatively stable at ~€40 million) round out the key mature-market destinations.

(Source: Top partners)

2.3 Trade concentration has declined, signalling diversification

The Herfindahl–Hirschman Index (HHI) for imports by value fell from 3,415 to 3,052 (–10.6%), while the export HHI dropped more sharply from 4,293 to 2,746 (–36.0%). Although both values remain in the moderately concentrated range, the decline indicates that the EU has diversified its trade relationships over the decade — both in sourcing and in destination markets. The export-side diversification is particularly pronounced, consistent with the emergence of new destination markets like China and the relative decline of Singapore's share. The concentration data provides further detail.

2.4 France has lost ground as the leading EU exporter, while Hungary and Germany have gained

Among EU Member States, France has historically dominated both imports and exports of CN 3001 but has seen dramatic declines: French imports fell from €586 million to €94 million (–83.9%), and French exports from €417 million to €216 million (–48.2%). By contrast, Hungary's imports rose by 59.3% (to €199 million), Italy's by 50.5%, and Germany's by 24.1%. On the export side, Germany (+59.3%) and Denmark (+22.6%) expanded their positions. The Netherlands remains the most specialised EU Member State in terms of revealed comparative advantage, accounting for a large share of intra-EU processing and re-export activity. These shifts are documented in the reporters data and the specialisation indicators.

3. Sub-Product Divergence: Hparin Dominance, Extract Volatility, and Supply Shocks

3.1 CN 300190 (heparin and other preparations) drives the overall trade pattern

The two sub-headings within CN 3001 tell markedly different stories. CN 300190 — which covers dried glands, heparin and its salts, and other n.e.s. preparations — accounts for the overwhelming majority of both import and export value. In 2025, 300190 represented €599 million of the €643 million in total imports (93.2%) and €341 million of the €404 million in total exports (84.5%).

The import trajectory of 300190 is dramatic: physical quantities fell from 3,572 tonnes in 2015 to just 695 tonnes in 2025 (–80.5%), while unit values exploded from €280,470/t to €860,884/t (+206.8%). This "less volume, more value" pattern is characteristic of a market where upstream raw material (crude heparin) processing has shifted away from the EU, while what is now imported consists more of higher-purity, higher-value fractions. On the export side, 300190 unit values peaked at an extraordinary €4.4 million/t in 2020, before declining to €1.5 million/t in 2025, suggesting a boom-and-normalisation cycle — possibly linked to COVID-19-era demand for anticoagulants (heparin is widely used to treat and prevent blood clots in hospitalised COVID patients).

(Source: Product Segment Breakdown)

3.2 CN 300120 (glandular extracts) has shown remarkable stability — with one anomaly

By contrast, CN 300120 (extracts of glands or other organs for organo-therapeutic uses) represents a much smaller but relatively stable segment. Export values have hovered between €45 million and €63 million throughout the period, with volumes actually rising from 350 tonnes to 457 tonnes (+30.7%). Unit values remained in a narrow band around €94,000–€136,000/t, suggesting a mature, less volatile market.

The import side of 300120, however, experienced a striking anomaly: volumes surged from 104 tonnes in 2015 to 3,844 tonnes in 2020 — a 37-fold increase — before collapsing back to 70 tonnes in 2021. This extraordinary spike, which concentrated in the 2018–2020 window, may reflect one-off stockpiling, a temporary reclassification effect, or the entry of a large-volume low-unit-value extract flow (unit values fell to as low as €21,885/t in 2020). Whatever the cause, the flow normalised rapidly and does not appear to have established a lasting structural change.

3.3 Supply shocks concentrated in Brazil and the United Kingdom

The volatility analysis reveals several notable shock events. The largest was a price shock in EU imports from Brazil in 2019, with an abnormality score of 253.8 and a unit-value shift of +994%, affecting 7.6% of import value. Given Brazil's role as a major bovine-derived heparin producer, this likely reflects a sharp tightening in supply or a shift toward higher-grade products. A second major shock hit EU imports from the United Kingdom in 2021 (abnormality 101.8, unit-value shift +3,467%), coinciding with post-Brexit trade friction and supply-chain reconfiguration. On the export side, a UK-directed price shock occurred in 2020 (abnormality 55.6, unit-value shift +129%), again plausibly linked to Brexit transition effects and pandemic-related demand.

(Source: Supply shocks)

Among regular trading partners, the United Kingdom and Brazil also exhibit the highest overall volatility on the import side (coefficient of variation of 1.69 and 1.28, respectively), while Argentina (1.65) and Australia (1.48) also show highly unstable import flows. On the export side, China (0.85) and Brazil (0.92) are the most volatile destinations. By contrast, Switzerland and Singapore — both major trading partners — display notably low import volatility (CVs of 0.13 and 0.26), underscoring their roles as stable, structural trade channels. The full volatility data provides further granularity.

3.4 Net import reliance has improved and export propensity has strengthened

The EU's net import reliance for CN 3001 stood at 12.4% in 2025, down from 15.7% in 2015 and well below its peak of 30.2% recorded in an intermediate year. This improvement reflects the combination of surging domestic production and falling import volumes. At the same time, the EU's export propensity (the share of domestic production that is exported to non-EU markets) rose from 11.0% to 14.5% (+32.4%), indicating that the expanding production base is increasingly oriented toward external markets. The salience analysis ranks export propensity (score: 67.9) as the most policy-relevant vulnerability indicator, well ahead of trade intensity (23.9). More detail is available in the vulnerability indicators.

Conclusion

The EU's trade in CN 3001 over 2015–2025 has been defined by three simultaneous transformations. First, a major contraction in physical import volumes — particularly in heparin-related sub-heading 300190 — has been more than offset by a near-tripling of unit values, indicating a structural shift in the nature of what the EU imports (less raw material, more processed product). Second, the EU has dramatically expanded its domestic production capacity (from €764 million to over €3 billion), which has reduced net import reliance and improved the trade balance. Third, the geography of trade has diversified: while Singapore and China remain dominant, their shares have eroded, new market outlets such as China (for exports) have emerged, and the EU's internal centre of gravity has shifted from France toward Hungary, Germany, and Italy.

The period also highlights the sensitivity of this market to external shocks — from Brazilian supply disruptions in 2019 to Brexit-related friction in 2020–2021 — and the particular role of heparin as a strategically important pharmaceutical input whose pandemic-era demand spike left a clear imprint on both trade values and unit prices. Going forward, the combination of growing EU self-sufficiency, continued diversification of trade partners, and the inherent volatility of animal-derived pharmaceutical raw materials will shape the trajectory of this niche but medically critical product group.