Germany’s fruit growers achieved a robust cherry harvest in the summer of 2025, according to final estimates released by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis). A total of 47,100 tonnes of cherries were harvested, comprised of 79% sweet cherries (37,300 tonnes) and 21% sour cherries (9,800 tonnes).
This year’s harvest represents a 4.2% increase compared to the ten-year average from 45,200 tonnes recorded between 2015 and 2024. Furthermore, the yield is significantly higher than the 35,400 tonnes harvested in 2024, marking an increase of 11,700 tonnes – a 33.1% rise.
The sweet cherry harvest reached 37,300 tonnes, exceeding last year’s considerably lower figure by 9,400 tonnes (33.6%). Compared to the ten-year average of 32,900 tonnes, growers witnessed an increase of 4,400 tonnes, or 13.3%. Favorable weather conditions during the flowering period, largely absent of frost and hail, contributed to the strong sweet cherry yield across most growing regions.
Sweet cherries are cultivated on 5,700 hectares within Germany, with Baden-Württemberg leading the way with 2,600 hectares. The state accounted for 47% of total German sweet cherry production, yielding 17,600 tonnes. Lower Saxony follows, producing 5,000 tonnes of sweet cherries from a cultivated area of 480 hectares. While Rhineland-Palatinate and Bavaria have larger sweet cherry cultivation areas (660 and 540 hectares, respectively), their respective harvest volumes were comparatively lower at 3,700 and 1,800 tonnes.
While Baden-Württemberg experienced a slight decrease in its sweet cherry harvest compared to the previous year (-1% or 250 tonnes), substantial increases were observed in Lower Saxony (+67% or 2,000 tonnes), Rhineland-Palatinate (+76%) and Bavaria (+30%). These regional variations are attributed to the exceptionally strong sweet cherry harvest in Baden-Württemberg in 2024, which contrasted with more challenging weather conditions and reduced yields in other regions.
The final estimate for the sour cherry harvest stands at 9,800 tonnes, significantly surpassing the yield of 7,500 tonnes recorded in the weather-impacted 2024. While initial estimates in June indicated a potential yield close to the ten-year average of 12,300 tonnes, the final figure ultimately fell 20% short. Beyond weather influences, the decline is also linked to a reduction in the area dedicated to sour cherry cultivation, decreasing from 2,000 hectares to 1,500 hectares (-25%).
Rhineland-Palatinate holds the largest cultivation area for sour cherries (460 hectares), followed by Saxony (300 hectares) and Baden-Württemberg (240 hectares). Rhineland-Palatinate also led in production, yielding 2,700 tonnes (+40% compared to the previous year). Thuringia and Saxony recorded substantial increases as well, with harvests of 1,900 tonnes and 1,800 tonnes respectively, mirroring the particularly challenging weather conditions experienced in 2024, which resulted in near-total crop failures in some eastern German regions.