Written answers

Thursday, 22 June 2017

Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Food Industry Development

Photo of Bernard DurkanBernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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12. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the degree to which he expects to be in a position to ensure the future of the food producing sector notwithstanding developments surrounding Brexit; if he expects to adopt new or specific policies in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28163/17]

Photo of Michael CreedMichael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Food Wise 2025, the new ten year strategy for the agri-food sector, 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 400 specific recommendations, spread across the cross-cutting themes of sustainability, innovation, human capital, market development and competitiveness; as well as specific sectoral recommendations. 

The implementation process for any strategy is vital for its success. Minister Creed chairs the Food Wise High Level Implementation Committee (HLIC), with high level representatives from all the relevant Departments and State agencies. The committee reviews progress on detailed actions on a quarterly basis, in order to identify and solve problems quickly. Stakeholders regularly present to the committee meetings on their priorities for particular sectors or themes and by the end of this year, the HLIC will have reviewed in detail progress on the five cross-cutting themes and the eleven individual sectors outlined in Food Wise 2025.

In light of the UK vote to leave the EU, Brexit has been included as a standard item on the agenda of each meeting of the HLIC. It is clear that driving the implementation of the Food Wise recommendations, particularly those related to market development, competitiveness and innovation, will assume even greater importance in the light of the UK decision.

The UK’s decision to leave the EU reinforces the need to develop as many outlets for our agri-food exports as possible, in order to minimise our dependence on any one market. Indeed this principle of market development is already a key component of Food Wise. We have been very active in recent years in efforts to diversify markets, and in aiming to respond to consumer demands in emerging markets.

The challenges linked to Brexit are immense, given the very close trading relationships between Ireland and the United Kingdom and on the island of Ireland.  We are determined to work closely with the industry and with other Governments to identify strategies and approaches that will maintain the success of the Irish agri-food and drinks sector.  

I will launch Steps to Success 2017, the second progress report on Food Wise 2025, of next month.

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