John Whelan: Food and drink inflation bolstered but year ahead looks bleak

"Increases may be seen as price gouging during the hard times of the last year and may linger long in the mind of buyers."

Teagasc's December report which found net margins in the dairy industry here surged in the past year.

Never waste a good crisis seems to have been very much in the minds of Ireland’s food and drink exporters in 2022.

The rampant increase in exports last year as reported by Bord Bia was mainly driven by the sector pushing up prices. This is unlikely to continue in the year ahead, as buyers at home and internationally look for lower prices to meet consumer cost of living pressure.