Northern Irish food industry continues to show growth

Northern Ireland's food and drink industry continued to show significant growth during 2012, according to official statistics.

Against a background of continuing economic challenges, the industry increased turnover by 4.2 per to £4.2 billion and continues to be Northern Ireland's single biggest manufacturer, contributing 25 per cent of output - down, however, by one per cent on the previous year. In 2011, the industry grew by 6.3 per cent to £3.98billion.

The annual statistics in 'The Size and Performance of the Northern Ireland. Food and Drinks Processing Sector, Subsector Statistics 2011, with provisional estimates for 2012'were published recently by the region's Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Full time employment rose slightly (0.8%) to 19,778, making it the region's single biggest manufacturer. Nine of the 10 sectors within the industry recorded growth - the only sector to show a downturn was milk and milk products because of price volatility during the year. This sector, however, increased employment by 1.2 per cent.

The key growth sectors within food and drink processing were beef and sheep meat, pig meat, and poultry. Beef and sheep meat had the greatest sales of £1.12 billion, while milk and milk products sold £685 million. Poultry, driven by Moy Park, Northern Ireland's biggest private sector business, provided sales of £685 million.

Other sectors showing significant growth were eggs, drink and fish and seafood.

The industry, in 2011, contributed 26 per cent of the region's external sales, mostly to Great Britain, and 24 per cent of exports to the Republic of Ireland and other markets. It contributes around 16 per cent of Northern Ireland manufacturing's added value.

A strategic action plan from the Agri-Food Strategy Board, 'Going for Growth' sets ambitious and challenging targets for export-led growth of the sector to 2020, including a 60 per cent increase in sales to £7 billion and a 75 per cent increase in sales outside Northern Ireland to £4.5billion. It expects employment to grow by 15,000 jobs over the period,

Welcoming the latest figures Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster said: "The figures highlight that our food and drinks processing sector continues to flourish. The increase in both turnover and exports between 2010 and 2011 is very encouraging and demonstrates the resilience of the industry. There continue to be opportunities for growth for businesses that are prepared to seek new markets and I would encourage the sector to optimise all available opportunities to further develop.

"The food and drinks processing sector continues to be a major asset to our economy. Over the last year, my Department has been working with the Agri-Food Strategy Board, along with leading employers from the sector to assist in the development of a strategic action plan for the industry. The targets within the plan reflect the agri-food industry's ambitions for the sector and I am confident that they can continue to grasp the emerging opportunities available to them and to go from strength to strength in the future."