The UK is targeting a 2.9 billion-pound ($3.5 billion) boost to food exports over the next five years, fueled by demand for British booze from Mexico to Australia.
The government will provide business support, mentoring and training to new companies seeking to tap export markets for food and drink, as well as helping existing exporters to beef up their trading operations, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said in a statement on Tuesday as it published an “International Action Plan for Food and Drink.”
As the U.K. prepares to leave the European Union, its biggest trading partner, the ministry is targeting an extra 185 million pounds of exports to Japan, where there’s demand for traditional British products like tea, jam and biscuits, according to Defra. It’ll seek an additional 293 million pounds of sales in Australia and New Zealand, where British beers and ciders are proving popular, and Mexico and other parts of Latin America may add another 215 million pounds of sales as products including whisky and gin catch on, the ministry said.
“With over 10 billion pounds worth of food and drink sold overseas in the last seven months and exports up almost 6 percent compared to 2015, there is no doubt we are open for business and ready to trade,” Environment Secretary Andrea Leadsom said in the statement. “Scottish salmon, Welsh beef, Northern Irish whiskey and English cheese are already well-known globally and I want us to build on this success by helping even more companies send their top quality food and drink abroad.”
News by Bloomberg, edited by Hospitality Ireland
