Good evening distinguished guests, past presidents, ladies and gentlemen.
Before I propose a toast to the association, I would just like to say a few words about our industry, with all its many challenges and successes.
Firstly it is great to be together again for the 55th Annual NIGTA Dinner after a 3 year absence. I would like to acknowledge and thank you all in this room, for rising to the challenges of this past 2 years of unprecedented disruption to our businesses and our lives from Covid 19. During the pandemic, we as an industry had to quickly adapt as we played our part as ‘key workers’ and a vital link in the local agri-food supply chain. We all had to introduce new business practices at breakneck speed. Hygiene took on a completely new meaning, social distancing became a new term in everyone’s vocabulary, and thankfully now we hope that the worst of the covid pandemic is all behind us.
As an industry we are in the midst of some very challenging times.
Russia’s war in Ukraine has caused a humanitarian crisis and our thoughts and prayers are with the Ukrainian people at this time, and we truly hope that a peaceful resolution can be found quickly.
The war has sent shockwaves through global markets, inducing volatility and leading to very challenging trading conditions. Often described as the ‘breadbasket’ of Europe, Ukraine is one of the world’s largest exporters of grains, and taken together, Russia and Ukraine account for nearly 30% of global wheat exports. Ukraine is also a major supplier of maize to the European market and the Black Sea is an important trading route for agricultural commodities to Northern Ireland.
Ukrainian port operations have been suspended, and with sanctions imposed on Russia, world trade is suffering major disruption as supply chains try to rebalance in response to altered supply and increased demand.
The impact of the war in Ukraine is also being felt in the energy, fertiliser and freight markets.
Energy costs had already skyrocketed in recent months and will continue to be high for the foreseeable future as Europe attempts to wean itself off its dependence on Russian energy. Last year, fertiliser production was halted because the high energy prices meant, it was no longer viable to produce and this had already lead to supply shortages. This has been further impacted by restrictions on Russia, which is a major fertiliser supplier.
The global freight market is also under pressure, having experienced a year of rapid growth due to increased economic activity post-lockdown, it is facing higher fuel costs, and now more recently, sanctions applied to Russian vessels has tightened the shipping supply pool even further.
These issues are not going to be short-term in nature. Input costs have been a challenge since the Covid-19 pandemic began and sadly the war in Ukraine seems likely to continue for some time.
There will also be a legacy of disruption even after the war is over due to the damage to infrastructure which will take time to rebuild.
In response to the crisis in Ukraine, NIGTA has engaged directly with the minister of agriculture and his DAERA team in highlighting the impacts to the local feed industry and farmers. NIGTA have also made various representations via other trade organisations to the UK government and the EU. Securing the supply of feed raw materials is the priority and we are looking for urgent action on flexibility with Maximum Residue Limits and GM approvals to broaden the access to alternative supply sources in other countries.
NIGTA has also highlighted the need at farm level for ongoing support packages to help and alleviate some of the financial pressures of the rising input costs.
Another challenge as an industry we are still facing, are the out workings of Brexit.
The Northern Ireland Protocol while it is not perfect, in most areas it is working and allowing the unique unfettered market access for Northern Irish companies to sell products into the GB market and EU single market.
However, on the broader front we have concerns where the UK government appears to be negotiating new Trade Agreements with other countries, and not robustly requiring those countries to operate to the same food production and environmental standards as those expected of farmers and food processors in the UK.
In our industry there are still a number of specific issues that need addressed:
- We are in a situation where we are unable to avail of either UK or EU tariff rate quota reliefs on certain grains and raw materials. Whilst this may not be an immediate concern, it has potential to create substantial disruption in the longer term by reducing our options for sourcing raw materials.
- Another Brexit issue is the divergence of regulations between the UK and the EU, which has the potential to create added bureaucracy, cost and an unlevel playing field.
As ever NIGTA is continuing to represent our interests in the ongoing Brexit meetings with the various stakeholders and is providing possible solutions to overcome the remaining obstacles. We remain committed to seeking the best possible resolutions for our industry.
If we look to the environment, there is no denying that global warming and climate change are a reality, and although somewhat over shadowed by recent events, last year’s COP 26 Climate Change Conference established a global consensus on working towards reductions in carbon emissions and a more sustainable environmentally friendly future.
When it comes to the environment, it is easy living in the West to be critical of farming with a full mouth, but globally we face a major challenge to feed a growing world population, a population that increases by over 220,000 people every single day, so it is important that we get the balance right in providing sufficient food and nutrients in the most sustainable way.
Closer to home, one of the most complex, exhausting and important challenges of this past 12 months has been the introduction of a Climate Change Bill at Stormont.
Initially, a Green Party private member’s bill was proposed that had a net zero emissions target by 2045 for Northern Ireland, and which was described by the UK Climate Change Committee as not credible and morally wrong. The private members bill was not grounded in science and it had the potential to devastate farming, rural communities and the agri-food industry if it were to have become law.
The agri-food industry in Northern Ireland is a key strategic sector of our overall economy, feeding 10 million people with sales to GB and further afield. Our soils and climate support grass based diets which, when combined with the technical expertise and efficiency of our farmers and processors, are the envy of the agricultural world. This is a major success story for our farming and agri-food companies, but it does bring challenges. Our industry now carries the environmental footprint of food consumed beyond our shores as well that of our local customers.
However climate change targets which result in dramatically reducing local livestock farming would in reality lead to imports from countries with higher emissions and where environmental standards are much lower. We would simply be exporting our environmental problems with no benefit to reducing global warming. We understand that significant change is required and as an industry we are committed to lowering emissions, but it is vital that all our efforts are supported by evidence-based legislation.
Thankfully in the end the local politicians eventually listened, and a more measured Climate Change Bill was recently passed at Stormont with an important amendment specifically for methane. The new Climate Change Bill is in line with the science and evidence of the IPCC and the Committee on Climate Change, which we very much welcome.
NIGTA alongside the other trade bodies played a considerable part in the lobbying efforts on this matter. To NIGTA members I would like to thank you all for your help and support during this campaign.
In all these challenges over this past number of years NIGTA has been very proactive and has ensured that our industry has been well represented and has a strong voice. NIGTA will continue to lobby Government on those issues that affect the future of our industry, working alongside with others from across the agri-food industry to create meaningful change and to urge our politicians and decision makers to recognise the true value of what we have to offer.
In conclusion, yes we are currently in difficult times, but our world-leading agri-food industry has a proven track record of resilience, and together I am confident that we will overcome these challenges.
Finally, I would like to recognise the hard work of our recently retired CEO of NIGTA, Mr Robin Irvine. Robin who was in the position for this past 9 years, has provided fantastic leadership and commitment to NIGTA and has steered the association through the various challenges. Robin however is not fully retiring and he will still continue to manage Food Fortress, our world leading feed assurance programme, helping to safeguard the integrity of our local food supply chain.
Also I would now like to take this opportunity to thank Gill Gallagher the new NIGTA CEO who has taken over the reins from Robin and has continued the hard work for the interests of all of our members.
2022 NIGTA Annual Dinner
