Northern Irish food and drink in year-long showcase

Northern Ireland's ?5 billion food and drink industry will be celebrated in a year-long programme of activities during 2016. The industry will be positioned at the forefront of the region's tourism strategy and will also see substantial investment to boost exports. Plans for the Northern Ireland Year of Food and Drink 2016 are well underway and details of what visitors and residents can expect were recently unveiled. The aim is to increase export sales to &pouind30 million, lead to a five per cent increase in visitor satisfaction and gain &pound10 million in positive PR. Tourism NI, which is leading the campaign, launched the initiative, hopes it will help to enhance the experience and quality of NorthernIreland's food offering; celebrate and enhance the food experience at events; tell the country's food and drink stories; provide new opportunities for food linked experiences; and develop a brand platform. Each month is set to have its own theme from January to December celebrating Northern Irish food and drink. January: Breakfast Month February: Love Local March: Heritage & Traditions April: Brewing & Distilling May: Landscape & Places June: Love Dairy July: Seas, Rivers & Loughs August: Love NI Meat September: Bread & Baking October: Harvest November: Legacy & Learn to December: Christmas & Premium Foods Terence Brannigan, Tourism NI chairman, said the initiative was a "golden opportunity" to build on Northern Ireland's sterling reputation for food and drink. "In the past few years Northern Ireland has experienced positive increases in tourism and has made significant progress in building a reputation for excellence in food production and hospitality," he said. "This initiative is a major opportunity to tie all of these success together under the one banner for a year-long celebration of all that is good about our food and drink." Tourism NI believes a year of focusing on the industry will inspire trade, growth and visitor spend as well as boosting Northern Ireland's destination reputation by putting food and drink at the heart of the tourism experience. Part of the vision for the year is to celebration the quality, innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship in the industry. Businesses and residents are being encouraged to get involved in theinitiative by showcasing the logo, throwing their own event and championing others. Tourism NI is also supporting the initiative with the development ofmasterclasses and mentoring programmes and a series of events and advisory roadshows. In addition, its Tourism Event Funding Programme 2016/17 will incorporate the Year of Food and Drink scheme. A total of ?300,000 of funding has been designated within this scheme specifically for food anddrink experiences at events.