March 29, 2024

Bord Bia to raise exports to S$1.1 billion by 2025 in South East Asia

▪ Ireland’s Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue’s first trade mission
to Singapore features the launch of Bord Bia’s (the Irish Food Board) three-year business strategy
for Singapore and South East Asia which aims to raise exports to S$1.1 billion1 (SDG) by 2025
▪ The trade mission includes high level trade engagements in Japan, Singapore and Vietnam.
▪ Minister McConalogue and Bord Bia CEO Michael Murphy will visit Food and Hotel Asia trade show
and participate in a series of Bord Bia-organised client seminars focusing on sustainable food
systems and food safety.
▪ During the trade mission, the Irish delegation will officially launch Irish beef and lamb on sale in
retail with Alternative Selection

Launching Bord Bia’s (the Irish Food Board) new three-year business strategy for the South East Asian market, Ireland’s Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue T.D., will visit Singapore this week with Bord Bia (the Irish Food Board), to engage in a series of trade engagements aimed at raising awareness of Ireland as a source of sustainable, safe and highquality European food and drink. Bord Bia’s new three-year strategy outlines a target of S$1.1 billion in Irish food and drink exports to South East Asia by 2025, led by the dairy and meat sectors.

Signifying the importance placed on the region, Minister McConalogue is accompanied by Michael Murphy, Bord Bia CEO, to represent Irish dairy, meat, seafood, alcohol and prepared consumer food exporters on the trade mission that includes visits to Singapore, Japan, and Vietnam.

Ireland exports agri-food to over 180 countries worldwide, reaching €13.5 billion in 2021. Ireland’s industryled strategy for the growth of the agri-food sector, Food Vision 2030, provides an ambitious and clear roadmap for the sustainable future development of the sector, including a target to increase this value to €21 billion by 2030.

In its Prioritising Markets – Opportunities for Growth study (2017), Bord Bia identified South East Asia as a
priority destination for Irish food and drink exports, with high potential for dairy exports in particular. In 2021, exports to the region were valued at €535 million, a 25% increase on 2020. These export figures are led by dairy and dairy ingredients (€314 million) beef (€76 million) and pigmeat (€76 million). The region also remains a valuable and increasingly important market destination for Irish seafood and drinks.
This ambitious new regional strategy will directly contribute to the global Bord Bia strategy which sets out
the objective to help grow the value of Irish dairy exports by 10.5% or €508 million to a value of €5.6 billion by 2025 through investment in market development in markets such as Singapore.

Leading the first in person trade mission by Bord Bia to Singapore since the start of the pandemic, Ireland’s Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue T.D. said, “South East Asia
represents an important and rapidly growing market for Ireland that values the quality of Irish food and drink products. On this trade mission, our goal is to build closer links with key partners as we aim to grow the value of our food exports to Singapore, alongside promoting the reputation of Ireland as a source of high quality sustainably produced meat, dairy, and other food products. There is enormous potential for the Singaporean and Irish food industries to grow together, especially with Singapore being the gateway to the South East Asian market, and Bord Bia’s new strategy will provide a roadmap for Singaporean food
businesses to explore and substantially increase their business with Ireland.”

Michael Murphy, Chief Executive of Bord Bia, said, “Irish food and drink exports to South East Asia last year were valued at €535 million, demonstrating that even against the backdrop of the challenges posed by the pandemic alongside other macro factors such as logistical issues and higher dairy prices, Singaporean consumers are still committed to sourcing sustainable, quality produce they trust. Irish dairy exporters are well positioned to supply ingredients to manufacturers producing western style bakery, functional drinks and other consumer products in the region, while Singaporean retailers and restaurants are finding success with Irish meats, seafood and alcohol. Ireland’s national sustainability programme, Origin Green, resonates particularly well in this sector.”

Ciaran Gallagher is Bord Bia’s Regional Director for South East Asia, and leads Bord Bia’s South East Asia Centre of Excellence in Singapore. He said that with the population of South East Asia predicted to expand by a further 100 million people by 2050, there will be a growing import demand, and one that “Ireland is ideally positioned to meet”.

“Ireland and Singapore share an understanding that security of supply is key to allowing both countries to plan ahead for growth and success and, as such, we are committed to developing durable business relationships with our customers here in Singapore,” he said. “This trade mission marks the start of an intensified programme of activity undertaken by Bord Bia to promote Irish food products and their producers to local partners who place a value on high quality food products. Our ambition is to grow exports from Ireland significantly and to build further on the strong trading relationship Ireland has with our customers in Singapore and trade missions such as this are a valuable means of raising the profile of Ireland as a food producing nation and unlocking commercial opportunities for Irish food and drink companies.”

Minister McConalogue and Bord Bia CEO Michael Murphy will both attend Food & Hotel Asia (FHA) trade show where 10 Irish companies2 are participating. FHA Singapore, the largest of its kind in the region which will attract 80,000 visitors, will be Bord Bia’s first trade show in the Singaporean market and will feature a Bord Bia pavilion aimed at building reputation among trade media of Irish food and drink industry. The Ireland pavilion will also host a trade seminar based on Bord Bia research findings, ‘Food Sustainability for the Asian Consumer’.

Irish food and drink is widely available in Singapore and most recently via online retailers Redmart and Food Panda. Irish duck has garnered huge success in Singapore via restaurant chains such as Duckland and Tunglok Peking Duck which serves exclusively duck from Ireland. As part of the trade mission, Irish beef and lamb will be launched in retail for the first time in Singapore, with promotions and cooking demo events taking place at Singapore’s Ryan’s Grocery. A new campaign will also focus on promoting Irish beef, pigmeat, poultry and lamb in the Singaporean foodservice channel.

Bord Bia is the Irish government agency that manages the promotion, trade development and marketing of the Irish food, drink and horticulture industry. Headquartered in Dublin, Bord Bia supports the national and international ambitions of Irish food, drink and horticulture businesses through its highly focused organisational structure and its network of offices Asia, EMEA and the USA. Bord Bia’s Singapore office is headed by Ciaran Gallagher, appointed in 2016 as Director for South East Asia to support Irish exporters targeting the South East Asia region. Ireland’s Minister for State the department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon T.D., will lead the Vietnam leg of the trade mission.

—————————————————————————————————————
1 (€800 million)
2 The 10 Irish companies participating in Food & Hotel Asia are: ABP Food Group, Glanbia Ireland; John Stone Fine Foods, Lakeland; Premier Brand Ireland (representing Butlers Chocolates; Nestbox Egg Company; Glenstal Food sand Glenisk) QK Meats, and Silverhill Duck.

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