Food for thought in exports

THOSE hoping that the food and drink industry continues to lead growth in Irish exports should be aware that hopes in this business have often been dashed in the past.

One only has to look at the 2009 slump to a €7 billion export total, thankfully followed by the 2010 recovery to €8bn — a return to the 2008 total.

In 2010, rising exports gave us the EU’s second-highest trade surplus after Germany — the only bright spot in our economy.