Industry Ireland (FDII), the Ibec group that represents the food sector, today published its ‘Policy recommendations of the food and drink sector 2014′, which stresses the central role the industry can play in the economic life of the country in the coming years.FDII Director Paul Kelly said: “As exports reach €10 billion, 2014 brings us to a critical juncture on the road to the Food Harvest 2020 target of €12 billion. The focus this year must be on effective implementation of agri-food policy across all of Government to enable the industry to achieve its full growth potential and continue to deliver a strong jobs dividend. Key to this is a manufacturing base that is cost competitive and efficient. This requires improved access to finance to support productivity improvements and capacity expansion, lower energy and waste charges as well as a continued focus on investing in innovation and skills development.”
“Government policies on issues such as sustainability measures, primary production competitiveness, grocery sector legislation and free trade agreements must be aligned with industry needs. There must also be an acknowledgement of and support for the role that the food and drink industry can play in multi-stakeholder health and nutrition initiatives.”
He concluded: “The food and drink industry is more deeply embedded in the Irish economy than any other manufacturing sector – 76% of its materials and 53% of its services are purchased in Ireland, and it has the largest payroll of any manufacturing sector with 230,000 jobs linked to the sector. Export growth in food and drink has a bigger impact on the wider economy that the rest of manufacturing.”
