Food

Irish Food And Drink Exports Break Record

By Publications Checkout
Irish Food And Drink Exports Break Record

Irish exports of food and drink reached the €10.5 billion mark for last year, which equates to a record-smashing €200 million per week.

The achievement is regarded as all the more noteworthy within the industry because it took place in the context of a global recession, and several industry-wide food scandals (most notoriously that of horse meat in 2013).

The majority of the growth in Irish food and drink exportations occurred outside Europe, including – most importantly – a 40-per-cent increase in food exports to China, which reached €520 million.

The minister for agriculture, food and the marine, Simon Coveney said over the past five years agri-food exports grew at a rate ten times that of normal merchandise exports, making it "the most important part of our economy": it outperformed all other sectors for 2014 in terms of exports.

"Every parish in this country has a stake or a dividend in this growth," he went on to add.

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