Food Wise 2025 sets out the practical ways in which aspirations for growth can be made tangible and the sector supported as it strives for new levels of success in the decade ahead. Ireland’s agri-food industry is on a journey, one that is connecting local communities across the island to vast and diverse food markets around the globe. Building on what has been a largely successful decade to date, Food Wise 2025 is setting out a vision of the industry continuing along this course of growth, recognising the importance of strategic foresight if emerging opportunities are to be fully realised in the decade ahead (pag. 1). Food Wise 2025 identifies a number of areas that require strategic action if the industry is to capitalise on, deliver and maximise the growth opportunities in the years to 2025. In particular, it highlights the need for: the attraction, retention, and development of talent right along the supply chain, supported by training that will foster the necessary technical and entrepreneurial skill sets; a greater focus on market development that is consumer-insight driven, to ensure Irish products are targeted at the right markets, and the right segments within those markets. These consumer insights will help the sector understand where its opportunities lie in emerging market opportunities, allowing businesses to focus on exports that deliver the best returns; productivity improvements that are driven by innovation and the adoption of the latest technologies; and value addition to sustainably produced primary materials, which will support local employment growth, ensure the viability of local producers and protect the environment and natural resources (pag. 5). Food Wise 2025 recognises that a significant increase in food production cannot be considered in isolation from its environmental impact, in particular regarding concerns associated with the depletion of natural resources and the potential impact on climate change. To address this, future food production systems must be as focused on managing and sustaining our natural resources as they are on increasing production. Making the right choices now will ensure that Ireland is well positioned to deliver sustainable growth far into the future. In order to achieve the growth opportunities which are available to the Irish agri-food sector over the next ten years there needs to be a focus on market development underpinned by appropriate resources to prioritise market opportunities and the development and protection of Ireland’s credentials and systems of producing high quality, safe and sustainable food (pag. 56). The Plan establishes to sustainably manage the forest resource, including genetic resources through the introduction of a national forest management planning system and state support for seed stand management and the establishment of seed orchards thereby ensuring the provision of a full range of timber and other benefits. This is a forests’ contribution to climate change mitigation through carbon sequestration and the use of wood products form an important element of the national climate change strategy (pag. 98).
Ireland · 2015-01-01