A Readiness Radar report from Bord Bia says that four out of five sectoral businesses remain optimistic despite the significant challenges of Brexit and the pandemic.

Bord Bia says its report is “an expert risk diagnostic tool”, and is designed to analyse the key challenges and opportunities facing the food, drink and horticulture sector.

The report analyses high-level risks facing the industry in key areas such as Covid-19, the trading environment with Britain, market diversification, talent management, and sustainability. The results are based on a survey of 111 Irish businesses from food, drink and horticulture, representing an estimated 60% of all food and drink exports.

Chief executive Tara McCarthy (pictured) commented: “It is incredibly heartening to witness the positive outlook of the Irish food and drink sector. The industry has bravely confronted Covid-19 and Brexit disruption. However, the adverse effects of Brexit on margins and costs signal the significant challenges still facing the sector."

Respondents are focused on the need to diversify into new export markets, says Bord Bia. The EU is seen as the most significant prospect in terms of market diversification, but with expectations for Asian markets in particular from larger enterprises and those in the meat, dairy, and seafood sectors.

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Sustainability is the most significant and the most widely accepted challenge facing the industry, with 80% of companies considering sustainability spend to be an investment as opposed to a cost, while 75% have verified sustainability measures in place.

Social responsibility, customer demands and consumer expectations were called out as the top three forces of change. Packaging, responsible sourcing, and waste are the top sustainability priorities for companies, and the sector almost unanimously agrees that sustainability will become more important in the next three years.

As in other sectors, attracting, developing and retaining talent also emerges as a ‘Top 5’ risk area, as 73% of businesses consider it a risk to future development and growth, with 38% citing it as a critical or very significant risk. 

The full Readiness Radar report is available here.