Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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259. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the countries to which Ireland currently exports lamb, including a breakdown by country, in volume and value in 2016, of total exports in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2439/17]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Full-year figures for sheepmeat exports by Country in 2016 are not yet available from the Central Statistics Office. The data provided by the Central Statistics Office show exports of Irish sheepmeat in both volume and value for the period January – November 2016. This is outlined in tabular form as follows highlighting the top 8 Countries which imported Irish sheepmeat representing 95% of all Irish exports in the period concerned.

Bord Bia's aggregate figures for 2016 are estimating that Irish sheepmeat exports for 2016 increased by 3% in volume and 4% in value terms which is extremely encouraging. I will continue to work on ensuring Irish lamb is exported to as many international markets as possible in 2017, and ensuring that new and meaningful markets are open to Irish lamb is top of my priorities for this year.