Agri-food sector - A justified cause for a little hope

IN too many ways this has been a grim year.

Tens of thousands of people lost jobs, forcing them to confront an uncertain and worrying future. The great majority of families were reminded of the deadening emptiness left by emigration as an estimated 70,000 people left to try to build a life in more vibrant economies.

Still more struggled to repay mortgages and wondered nightly how long the banks’ wolves can be kept from the door, but amidst all of this choking austerity at least one sector is a cause for justified optimism.