Food dominates Northern Ireland's Top 100 Companies

Twenty-three of Northern Ireland's Top 100 companies are in the food industry, according to a new study of the private sector. The statistic is a further demonstration of the extent of the industry's contribution to the local economy.

The top three companies are in food. Moy Park is the top business, the only one with sales in excess of £1 billion.

Poultry processor Moy Park, now owned by Brazil's JBS, has been named as Northern Ireland's biggest company for the fifth consecutive year. In second place is Dunbia, one of the UK's biggest beef and lamb processors. Dunbia had sales in excess of £820 million last year. Dunbia has moved up to second from third last year.

Grain importer W&R Barnett is in third position with £815 million.
It's the first time in the 27-year history of the list, produced by D&B for Ulster Business magazine and sponsored by A&L Goodbody, that agri-food firms have dominated the top three positions.

Other food companies in the Top 100 include Fane Valley Co-Operative, Northern Ireland's biggest farmers' co-operative at 12, owner of meat processor Linden Foods and White's Oats, the region's only oat miller, United Dairy Farmers, owner of Dale Farm and Northern Ireland's biggest dairy business, listed at 17, and Foyle Food Group at 26, a leading meat processor.

The list includes major food distributors such as John Henderson, owners of the Spar franchise in Northern Ireland, and Musgrave Retail Partners. SHS is listed at 21.

Overall the Top 100 companies have together produced record sales of £23.6bn, a one per cent increase on the previous year.

The Ulster Business list ranks companies according to turnover filed with Companies House as it offers a good insight into how much money the business are putting back into the local economy through salaries and other costs, such as raw materials.