January 15, 2008

Irish dairy market thrive on strong Asian demand

Irish dairy sector announced sales increase of 13 percent to EUR2.36 billion (US$3.5 billion) in 2007, as the industry successfully tapped on the strong demand of Asian countries.

Irish food agency, Bord Bia, said that the dairy sector's performance boosted EUR414 million (US$615 million) worth of exports for Ireland's entire food industry, which gained EUR8.62 (US$12.82) billion in profit.

Dairy products accounted for 65 percent, or EUR270 million (US$402 million), of the total annual growth.

The dairy sector is expected to continue its upward trend on the coming years.

Bord Bia's Aidan Cotter said the high dairy exports was partly due to shortfall of supply among milk producing countries like Australia and Argentina.

Furthermore, the burgeoning demand from Asia also pushed up the export growth. Asia's ballooning demand for dairy imports has been due to the increasing use of land for biofuels.

Cotter said that the changing market environment will further propel the competitive advantage of Ireland's grass-based dairy and meat sectors.

The Irish Dairy Board said that strong GDP growth in Asia, together with the income-per-capita growth being experienced in oil producing regions, population growth, westernisation of diet and, in several cases, government milk consumption programmes, are all leading to increased demand for dairy products.