February 17, 2021 5:39 pm
Efforts to diversify markets for Irish agri-food exports mean such goods now reach more than 180 countries around the world, according to Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon.
The minister of state was speaking in the Dáil earlier today (Wednesday, February 17) about the performance of Irish agri-food exports in 2020.
“Despite disruptions to supply and demand, agrifood exports in 2020 were €14.1 billion, compared with €14.5 billion the previous year, a 3% overall reduction,” he said.
This is an extraordinary achievement when considering the challenges that food and drink producers have faced since March 2020.
Quoting export figures for 2020 – released on Monday by the Central Statistics Office – Minister Heydon said: “Dairy and beef contribute €7.4 billion to our exports, which is over 52% of our total agrifood exports.
February 10, 2021 4:10 pm
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue and Minister of State Martin Heydon met with Bord Bia to examine plans for market development for Irish food and drink over the course of 2021.
In what is the first in a series of quarterly meetings, the meeting took place virtually today (Wednesday, February 10) between Minister McConalogue, Minister of State Heydon and Dan McSweeney, Bord Bia chair, with Tara McCarthy, Bord Bia CEO.
The meeting discussed Bord Bia’s activity for 2021 including new market development priorities, import substitution opportunities, operating in the post-Brexit world, and customer and farmer engagement.
January 21, 2021 11:46 am
Trade flows between Great Britain and Ireland are operating at approximately 50% when compared to the same period in 2020, according to Revenue.
In a statement to
AgriLand, a spokesperson for Revenue explained:
“There are several factors that are influencing this including the significant levels of stockpiling that were seen in advance of the end of the transition period, trade moving to direct routes to the continent as well as restrictions relating to Covid-19.”
The representative added that some businesses which are in a position to do so “may also be adopting a ‘wait and see’ approach in order to fully understand the impact of trading with the UK under the new conditions”.
January 20, 2021 4:20 pm
The European Parliament Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development (AGRI Committee) has called on the European Commission to call a truce and negotiate a moratorium on trade sanctions with the new Biden Administration in the US.
The committee said the EU must “immediately launch negotiations with the new US administration to call a truce in the Airbus/Boeing dispute and avoid further sanctions that damage EU farmers”.
The matter refers to a matter in October 2019, when the US won the largest arbitration award in World Trade Organization (WTO) history in its dispute with the EU over illegal subsidies to aircraft manufacturer Airbus.
January 19, 2021 3:38 pm
Minister for European Affairs, Thomas Byrne has welcomed the announcement by Samskip of a new weekly direct shipping route between Dublin and Amsterdam starting from Monday, January 25.
“This new service is very welcome and will add to the other direct services to EU ports that have come on stream in recent months,” the minister said.
“It allows our exporters and importers to bypass customs and other checks which were brought about by Brexit and provides greater reach into EU markets in northern Netherlands, Germany and beyond.”
Advertisement
Launching next Monday, the fixed day service departs from the TMA Terminal Amsterdam on Monday evenings for arrival in Dublin on Wednesday and a weekend return to Amsterdam.