Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 13 December 2016

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Impact of Brexit on Irish Agriculture and Fisheries Sectors: Discussion

4:00 pm

Mr. Seán Finan:

It does. I am not sure whether there is an up-to-date report, but it does gives some insight into the matter.

I will go back to Deputy Jackie Cahill's point about market share and Ireland's dependence on the UK market. The ESRI's report gives us an indication of the share of UK imports from elsewhere in the European Union. Germany accounts for 28.34%; the Netherlands, 12.73%; France, 10.81%; Belgium, 10.5%; and Ireland, 5.05%. There are, therefore, many countries other than Ireland that have huge dependence on the UK market, including Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and France. Ireland is in fifth place. Cars and other such products probably account for the significant percentages for other member states. I am sure, therefore, that Brexit is also a worry for all of these countries.

I think I have addressed most of the questions asked. I believe I have answered the final point made by Deputy Jackie Cahill about Food Wise 2025.

Huge work has been done by Bord Bia and Ornua in the marketing of our food. I know that Ornua has based a number of its employees in the United States in order to sell into that market. Bord Bia has identified huge potential in north Africa, China and a variety of other markets. I am not sure about its budget, but its strategic direction might need to be set by the Government. That would dictate the budget the agency would require to deliver on the strategic targets set by the Government and the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

I am not sure whether our CEO has anything further to add. I thank the committee for its time.