News

UK F&B exports grow 8.5% to achieve record high

23 Aug 2017

According to the Food and Drink Federation (FDF), exports of all UK food and drink in H1 2017 grew to £10.2bn, up 8.5% on H1 2016 – the largest H1 exports value on record.

According to the Food and Drink Federation (FDF), exports of all UK food and drink in H1 2017 grew to £10.2bn, up 8.5% on H1 2016 – the largest H1 exports value on record. Exports to the EU27 grew at a faster rate than to non-EU markets, increasing the share of sales to the EU to 61.2%. Sales of branded food and non-alcoholic drink continue to lead the way with exports up 11.3% on H1 2016. The UK's top 3 export products are whisky, salmon and beer, while the top 3 export destinations remain Ireland, France and the United States

The three export markets that saw the greatest percentage growth in value in H1 were South Korea (+77%), China (+35%), and Belgium (+39%). The rapid growth in exports to growing East Asian markets was led by South Korea fast gaining a taste for British beer, and overall exports surged to £156.3m.

The US is the UK's top non-EU market for exports of branded food and drink, reaching £91.5m in H1 2017, up from £87.8m in 2016. Top UK branded goods sold to the US in H1 included food preparations, bread, pastry, cakes, puddings and sweet biscuits. The US has been identified by the UK government as providing significant opportunities for a trade deal post-Brexit.

While the fall in the price of the pound had helped to boost UK export competitiveness, this currency weakness has also led to an increase in the cost of many essential imported ingredients and raw materials. This has resulted in the UK's food and drink trade deficit increasing by 16% to - £12.4bn in H1 2017.

FDF recently commissioned Grant Thornton to undertake an economic contribution report, which identified China (£274.3m in H1), India (£50.7m in H1) and the UAE (£164.8m in H1) as the top 3 target markets that food and drink companies would like to target. These countries were prioritised by the companies surveyed based on their scale which affords a sizeable middle class target customer base with strong and growing demand for quality Western products.