World Class Food & Drink Producers

Our green grasslands also play a crucial role in the success of our meat industry, with flavoursome Irish beef appearing on the menus of some of the world’s best restaurants. Exports of Irish meat and livestock reached over €4bn in 2022, a 15% value increase. Beef, sheepmeat, pigmeat and poultry products play an important role in our agri-food industry, accounting for a third of Ireland’s food and drink exports.

As an island on the edge of Europe, Ireland is surrounded by the cold, clear waters of the wild Atlantic Ocean and some of the richest fishing grounds in the EU. Our location puts us uniquely close to a diverse range of fresh, premium quality seafood including Irish mackerel, whelks, crab, oysters and langoustines. Exports increased by 3% to €530m in 2022 and our seafood is now enjoyed in many countries across the globe.

With a long and proud history of brewing and distilling, it is little wonder that our stout, whiskey and cream liqueur brands are among the most famous in the world. Irish whiskey – one of three GI protected spirits in Ireland – is now the fastest growing spirit internationally and there has been a resurgence in our gin industry with several exciting new premium brands emerging. Overall, Irish drinks exports increased by 22% to be worth €2bn in 2022, showing a strong recovery after the pandemic slowdown.

Exports of Horticulture are estimated to have exceeded €300 million in 2022 and key Irish crops include mushrooms, potatoes, field vegetables, fruit and protected food crops. Mushrooms remain Ireland’s star performer, accounting for half of the value exports largely destined for the UK.

Ireland’s highly creative food producers work with the best natural ingredients from our island to create an exciting range of Prepared Consumer Foods. Operational excellence, long-standing category partner relationships and consumer-led innovation are contributing to the success of this sector. Exports were valued at €3bn in 2022. The UK market accounts for two thirds of exports. Value added meat products increased by 30% compared with 2021, helped by the sustained reopening of the foodservice channel in most markets.

A significant number of Irish food drink products are sold into the business-to-business channel for further processing by manufacturers. Ireland has a number of manufacturing companies who service this channel and supply a range of products from technical ingredients to bakery mixes and prepared meat toppings.