The German container glass market is set to stabilise slightly in 2025

08.05.2026

Sales of container glass in Germany rose slightly again in 2025 for the first time. Following significant declines in previous years, the industry reported an increase of 2.2 per cent. Food packaging and bottles for wine, sparkling wine and soft drinks performed particularly well.

Several empty glass jars and bottles, with the focus on the bottom of a glass jar. Symbolising glass containers.

Following several years of decline, sales of container glass are set to recover slightly by 2025 – particularly in the food packaging sector and certain beverage segments.
Photo: ©unsplash/MChe Lee

Sales of container glass in Germany stood at around 3.87 million tonnes in 2025, representing an increase of 2.2 per cent compared with the same period the previous year. Sales grew both domestically and abroad.

“Following the sharp declines in sales in 2023 (down 15.5 per cent) and 2024 (down 2.5 per cent), this is a small sign of stabilisation. Despite this development, however, it is still too early to speak of a return to normality. The operating environment for glass container manufacturers remains challenging. It is now crucial that the production of glass packaging in Germany remains competitive. After all, glass is a high-quality packaging material that provides optimum protection for food and drink and is valued by consumers,” comments Christiane Nelles, Chief Executive of the German Glass Industry Association (Bundesverband Glasindustrie e. V.).

Sales of beverage bottles vary across different sub-segments

Sales in the beverage bottles segment rose slightly by 1.4 per cent in 2025 compared with the previous year. A look at the sub-segments revealed a decline in sales in the beer and spirits segment (down 1.6 per cent). By contrast, sales developed positively in the wine and sparkling wine segments (up 3.6 per cent) and in non-alcoholic beverages (water, milk and juice), which recorded growth of 6.1 per cent. This meant that the positive trends seen in the first half of 2025 continued. However, the market remains below the levels of previous years.

Sales of glass packaging for food are on the rise

The food packaging glass and pharmaceutical and cosmetics packaging glass segments recorded a 3.6 per cent increase in sales in 2025. Both sub-segments showed growth: sales of food packaging glass excluding FVC (fruit, vegetables and pickles) rose by 6.1 per cent. The sub-segment of packaging glass for FV&C recorded slight growth of 0.8 per cent compared with the same period last year.