Report on the Northern Ireland Food and Drinks Processing Report 2022
Date published:
The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs has published the annual National Statistics the ‘Northern Ireland Food and Drinks Processing Report 2022’.
The report contains comprehensive data on the values of sales, value added, number of employees and destination of sales for each of the ten constituent subsectors of the food and drinks processing sector for 2021 and 2022. These key statistics are supplemented with fifteen performance indicators for each subsector. Provisional estimates of sales and employment are also provided for 2023.
This edition of the report, contains experimental statistics on the value and origin of purchases of goods and services made by each of the ten constituent subsectors for processing.
In addition, a time-series of data covering the period 1989 – 2022 has been published on the DAERA website for each of the main variables. These will enable users to identify trends over time in variables of interest to them.
The report’s key findings are:
- Total gross turnover of the Northern Ireland food and drinks processing sector increased by 11.0 per cent between 2021 and 2022 to £6,516 million. Provisional estimates for 2023 project a 9.4 per cent increase to £7,128 million.
- In 2022, sector sales rose to four of its five broad markets. Great Britain saw the largest increase (+£337.9m), while sales to the Rest of the World decreased (-£91.8m). Great Britain remains the sector’s largest market, making up 48.5% of total sales.
- In 2022, the food and drinks sector contributed 35.5% of total manufacturing sales, down from 39.3% in 2021.
- Between 2021 and 2022, the estimated number of direct full-time employee equivalents (FTEs) in the sector increased by 1.0 per cent to 25,508 FTEs. Provisional estimates for 2023 project a 1.1 per cent decrease to 25,216 FTEs.
- The sector contributed 30.1 percent to total manufacturing employment in 2022, which is similar to the 30.3 percent reported in 2021.
- The value added by the sector increased by 3.4 per cent to £1,120 million between 2021 and 2022. This growth was driven by wages (+£17.6m) and net profit (+£10.9m).
- The sector's contribution to total Northern Ireland gross value added (GVA) fell slightly from 2.3% in 2021 to 2.2% in 2022. Its share in manufacturing GVA dropped slightly from 20.0% (2021) to 19.3% (2022).
- Total purchases made by the Northern Ireland food and drinks processing sector are estimated to have increased by 11.7 per cent between 2021 and 2022 to £5,142million.
- Between 2021 and 2022, purchases in the sector increased from four of its five broad markets. Purchases from Northern Ireland saw the largest growth (+£263.7m), whilst purchases from the Rest of the World decreased (-£2.4m). Northern Ireland makes up 63.1% of the sector's purchases.
Notes to editors:
- This statistical press release relates to the annual publication “Northern Ireland Food and Drinks Processing Report 2022”
- The report, and time-series data from 1989 – 2022, may be downloaded from the DAERA website at: Northern Ireland Food and Drinks Processing Report.
- This is a National Statistics report. National Statistics meet the highest standards of trustworthiness, quality and public value. They undergo regular quality assurance reviews to ensure that they meet customer needs. They are produced free from any political interference.
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