Bord Bia chief hails agri-food sector’s record €13.5bn exports

Tara McCarthy says industry’s resilience in the face of cost inflation, Brexit and Covid is ‘simply remarkable’

Tara McCarthy, chief executive, Bord Bia: ‘While Brexit means more paperwork and procedures, it’s important to remember most food businesses in Ireland are seasoned exporters.’ Picture: Fergal Phillips

Ireland’s agri-food industry has shown remarkable resilience over the past year to deliver record food and drink exports of €13.5 billion, the head of Bord Bia has said.

Tara McCarthy, chief executive of the state agency responsible for food promotion, said the industry had delivered an exceptionally strong performance last year despite significant trade headwinds, including Covid-19 disruption, customs changes from Brexit and severe cost inflation over recent months.

“The record-breaking export performance of our food and drinks industry are set against a backdrop of what I would call the reordering of the global food system due to Covid-19,” McCarthy told the Business Post.