Fourteen Irish food and drink companies are participating at BioFach 2010, the world’s largest and most prestigious organic food fair, taking place in Nuremberg, Germany from 17- 20 February.
Bord Bia is organising and coordinating Irish representation from the meat and beverages sectors to prepared foods and seafood. Mr. Trevor Sargent, T.D, Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food will attend Biofach tomorrow (Wednesday 17th) to launch Ireland’s presence at the event and to meet with Katherine De Matteo, President of IFOAM (International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements).
Biofach is widely regarded as the most important trade event in the international organic food and drink calendar. In 2009, the event attracted over 46,000 European and International trade visitors from 130 countries. Speaking on Ireland’s participation at the event Minister Sargent said "BioFach, under the patronage of IFOAM applies strict admission criteria to guarantee the constantly high quality of the products on display. The strong Irish representation at the event is testament to the high standards and quality of Irish organic produce available."
He added "The international organic market has undergone significant development in recent years. More than $46 billion worth of organic food was traded worldwide in 2008. I believe that there are opportunities for Irish companies to make inroads into these expanding markets and that the Biofach initiative is an important step in that direction."
Germany is the biggest organic market in Europe, with an estimated annual sales turnover of €5.8 billion. The German organic sector continues to perform strongly driven by the adoption of Bio (organic) by the discounters such as Aldi and Lidl. Discounters account for a 41.9 percent share of the German retail market, valued at €258 billion*. Germany also has the highest number of specialised organic supermarkets in Europe and dedicated organic chains include: Basic, Alnatura, Dennree and Bio-Supermarket.
Bord Bia Chief Executive Aidan Cotter commented "Germany is Ireland’s second most important food and drink market on Continental Europe (after France). As the industry seeks to increasingly broaden its export reach, eurozone markets, such as Germany, offer the prospect of new opportunities and greater stability. Ireland’s significant presence at Biofach is an acknowledgement of the importance of the German organic food market and of Ireland’s capacity to supply it. It is one of a range of market building initiatives planned by Bord Bia for 2010 designed to assist the food industry broaden its export reach."
Most of the companies exhibiting at Biofach were also present at Marketplace 2010, Bord Bia’s recent trade development event which took place in Croke Park Dublin last week. Over 300 international buyers engaged in over 3,800 pre-scheduled meetings, speed dating style, designed to build new business relationships with 150 leading Irish food and drink companies. Some 150 buyers from Continental Europe, including Germany and Eastern Europe, attended the event including key organic buyers, distributors and importers.
Additionally, many of the Irish seafood companies exhibiting at Biofach will also participate in the European Seafood Exposition (ESE), the world's largest seafood fair, taking place in Brussels in April. Bord Bia is coordinating the presence of fourteen Irish companies to ESE, which attracts buyers and sellers from over 140 countries around the world.
In December 2009, Ireland’s organic sector was valued at €105 million**, with the volume increasing by 1.6% to 36,518 tonnes, compared to 2008 figures. Reflecting general price deflation across the food market during 2009, the value of organic sales declined by 10 percent.
Ireland’s food and drink exports to Germany for the first nine months of 2009 were valued at €224 million, total exports for 2008 were €330 million. The main Irish food products exported to the German market are dairy products (butter), prepared foods, meat and alcohol.
Ireland’s Largest Indigenous Industry
The agriculture and food industry plays an important role in the Irish economy and remains its largest indigenous sector accounting for almost 9 percent of employment and 10 percent of exports. As much as 65 percent of manufacturing exports by Irish-owned firms are estimated to consist of food and drink. The long-term outlook for the sector, with its high export orientation, remains positive.
A sustained decline in the value of sterling combined with the economic downturn and severe difficulties in the global dairy market created unprecedented challenges for Irish food and drink exporters in 2009. The underlying performance of the industry, reflected in an estimated volume decline of just 3 percent, was impressive when set against these challenges. The value of Irish food and drink exports declined by 12 percent last year, or by just under €1 billion, to stand at €7.12 billion.