Eu Glassmaking In 2004

The 25 member countries of the EU form the world's largest glass market, both in terms of production and consumption. The EU glass industry has around 13,000 companies and accounts for more than a quarter of the EU non-metallic mineral sector. The glass industry is highly concentrated and more than 80% of glass is produced by about 10 multinationals, each with more than 1000 employees. In 2004, total EU-25 glass production reached a volume of 32.6M tonnes, making the EU the largest glass producer in the world with a market share of around 30%.