The broccoli is original from Italy, from where it spreaded to other parts of the world. It is mainly produced in the United States, where it is very appreciated, like in some European countries such as France, Italy, England and The Netherlands.

The broccoli is original from Italy, although its popularity comes from the United States, where it is more important than the cauliflower. It probably derives from a type with many leaves and grafted, that bore several small heads, without a defined main head.

In western Europe it is a very appreciated vegetable. The main producing and consuming countries are Italy, France, The Netherlands and England. In Spain, the production is scarce, although its culture is increasing and every time it is more and more consumed.

The FAO gathers the data of production, export and import of cauliflower and broccoli all together. The main producing countries are India, China, Italy and France.

The production per continents is:

Continent	Thousand tons	%
Africa	261	2
Asia	10,889	76
Europe	2,197	15
North America	648	5
Oceania	173	1
South America	72	1
Total	14,240	100

Source: FAO Production Yearbook, 2000

The 10 main producing countries are:

Country	Thousand tons
India	5,000
China	4,382
Italy	528
France	500
Spain	352
The United States	294
Poland	286
United Kingdom	219
Pakistan	189
Germany	157

Source: FAO Production Yearbook, 2000

The 10 main exporting countries are:

Country	Thousand tons
France	200
Spain	197
The United States	86
Italy	81
México	54
Guatemala	31
Australia	29
Jordan	20
China	16
Belgium-Luxembourg	13

Source: FAO Trade Yearbook, 1999

The 10 main import countries are:

Country	Thousand tons
United Kingdom	105
Germany	88
Canada	40
France	39
The Netherlands	35
China	29
Belgium-Luxembourg	22
Malaysia	18
Italy	12
Singapur	11

Source: FAO TradeYearbook, 1999