The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue is set to lead a first, post pandemic, full ministerial trade mission to China in co-operation with Bord Bia.
The trade mission will comprise events in both Beijing and Shanghai, including government-to-government meetings, Bord Bia engagements with leading customers for Irish food and participation in SIAL Shanghai, the world’s largest food and beverage trade show.
The minister will also launch Bord Bia-led EU dairy and meat promotion seminars during the trade mission, as well as promotional events for Irish whiskey and seafood, along with Enterprise Ireland events.
Agriland will be in attendance for the Shanghai-leg of the trade mission bringing up-to-date information from the events as they unfold.
China
Speaking ahead of the trade mission, Minister Charlie McConalogue said: “I am delighted to lead this first full in-person trade mission to China following the lifting of pandemic travel restrictions.
“This trade mission provides us with an important opportunity to promote our safe, high-quality, sustainably-produced meat, dairy, seafood and beverages in a market which has huge potential.
“I look forward in particular to supporting the re-entry of Irish beef on the Chinese market following the lifting the restrictions by China earlier this year.”
McConalogue noted that the government’s Food Vision 2030 strategy envisages growing the value, rather than the volume, of Irish agri-food exports in the decade ahead, and delivering that value back to farmers and fishers.
Trade mission
The minister continued: “This trade mission is an exciting opportunity to further raise the profile of our unique food and drink offering among discerning Chinese consumers.
“The potential for growing the value of our trade with the Chinese market, in particular for beef exports, is critically important to the development ambitions of the sector which ultimately supports the sustainability of our family-farm model.”
“My clear focus on this trade mission is to support the sector’s efforts to grow their presence in China especially for added-value products.”
According to Bord Bia, Ireland has built “a solid trading relationship” with China and it is now our sixth-largest trade destination for food and drink by value, accounting for 4% of all exports.
Bord Bia has devised a combination of insight-led itineraries and strategic buyer engagement opportunities to support Irish food and drink companies in their efforts to deepen existing key trade relationships and to create new business opportunities.
“A growing middle class with high disposable incomes in Chinese cities is creating an aspirational consumer base with an increasing interest in premium food products and access to sophisticated digital retail platforms.
“Irish exporters are ideally placed to service these consumer demands,” Jim O’Toole, Bord Bia chief executive, said.
Minister McConalogue said that the trade mission will be “a real Team Ireland undertaking”, with strong support from the Embassy of Ireland in China, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM), Bord Bia and Enterprise Ireland.
“I also very much look forward to engaging with Irish food companies and their key Chinese trade customers,” he said.