Northern Ireland food and drink industry grows in ’09 and ’10.

Northern Ireland based food manufacturers and processors have made positive signs throughout 2010.

By maximising on increasing sales of food outside of NI, the industry has made positive steps.

The food industry in Northern Ireland is vital to its economy, bringing in high annual revenues for the country. NI prides itself upon its ability to produce high quality popular foods that are sold and consumed internationally.

The plan for the future involves a push on relationship building between the food processors and the farming community throughout Northern Ireland, allowing the industry to continue to provide the food types that consumers' desire.

The growth in Northern Irelands food industry comes as good news as many other sectors in the United Kingdom experienced no growth throughout 2009 and 2010. The NI Food industry increased its output by almost ten percent in addition to growth in the number of employees in the industry, at almost three percent.

The push on moving into new markets has resulted in NI being one of the main suppliers of food and drink products to the domestic market. Sales of around £600m worth of food and drink are also exported internationally to markets outside of the UK, bringing the export of food and drink to 15% of all manufactured goods exported out of NI.

The industry boasts impressive employment statistics of almost 20,000 people, worth and impressive £3bn. And around a third of the sector's worth comes from the sale of meat alone.

Food companies within Northern Ireland are successfully competing with other UK based manufacturers and processors, as well as competitors internationally. This successful competing has been aided by the sector's high level of innovation and its high quality and original product ranges.

The customer base of the industry is wide and well reputable, including supermarket giants such as the French Carrefour. In the UK, the sector supplies to three of the big four major multiples, including other large retailers such as M&S.

Northern Ireland's food and drink industry is a profitable and successful sector, largely due to its push on both innovation and exports.

Perhaps other industries could learn from this?

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