Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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17. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the extent to which he remains satisfied regarding the attainability of the targets in Food Harvest 2020 and Food Wise 2025; if any adjustments are likely to be required in order to ensure the realisability of the targets in any particular area of the food sector; the extent to which he expects employment throughout the sector to grow throughout the period in question; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41353/15]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The main targets set out in the Food Harvest report published in 2010 were, by 2020, to increase the value of:

- Primary output in the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sector by 33% (from a 2007-09 average baseline),

- Agriculture, food (including seafood) and drink exports by 42% (from a 2007-09 average baseline),

- Value added production by 40% (from a 2008 baseline).

In addition to these value increases, the dairy industry targeted a 50% increase inmilk production by 2020, to be progressed following the abolition of milk quotas in April this year.

Progress on these targets is monitored and reviewed on an ongoing basis. The fourth annual report “Milestones for Success 2014”, published in September 2014, showed that the sector had achieved very significant progress on these targets and illustrated the manner in which the Food Harvest 2020 vision of ‘smart, green, growth’ is being attained. The Milestones report showed that, compared to the Food Harvest baseline:

- primary output had increased by 32% in 2014;

- Agri-food exports had increased by 27% in 2014;

- and value added had increased by 29% in 2012 (latest data available).

Food Wise 2025, the new ten year strategy for the agri-food sector published in July this year, builds on the successful vision of Food Harvest 2020. It identifies the opportunities and challenges facing the sector and provides an enabling strategy that will allow the sector to grow and prosper. Food Wise includes more than 380 specific recommendations, spread across the cross-cutting themes of sustainability, innovation, human capital, market development and competitiveness; as well as specific sectoral recommendations.

If these recommendations are implemented, the expert committee which drew up the Food Wise Strategy believes that the following growth projections are achievable by 2025:

- Increasing the value of agri-food exports by 85% to €19 billion;

- Increasing the value added in the agri-food, fisheries and wood products sector by 70% to in excess of €13 billion;

- Increasing the value of primary production by 65% to almost €10 billion;

With regard to employment, Food Wise foresees the creation of 23,000 additional jobs in the agri-food sector all along the supply chain from primary production to high value added product development.

Realising these growth projections will be challenging, but I am confident that they can be achieved.

I chair the High Level Implementation Committee, including senior officials from relevant Departments and State agencies, which will drive implementation of the Food Wise recommendations. The HLIC met for the first time in September. The second meeting will take place later this morning, dealing specifically with sustainability, which will be at the core of the strategy’s implementation. The implementation of Food Wise will be influenced by the final Environmental Analysis Report on Food Wise, which will be presented to the HLIC today.