Opening the 鈥楨xport to grow鈥� session, chair David Exwood began with a reminder: UK farmers have the soils, water, climate, skills and technology to grow great food, backed by some of the leading food standards in the world.
With the UK鈥檚 valued reputation and a growing world population to feed, he urged farmers to seize the opportunity to go for international growth.
Sandra Sullivan MBE, Director of the Food & Drink Exporters Association, offered a comprehensive overview of the global market.
She said that the EU still accounted for nearly 60 per cent of our international food and drink trade in 2023, followed by the US, China, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates.
She explained that the top 10 export markets (in descending order) were whisky, salmon, cheese, chocolate, milk and cream, soft drinks, beef, breakfast cereals, lamb and mutton and fish.
Sandra warned that most growth was inflationary at the moment, with Asia being the only place likely to be showing true growth, although Africa, Canada, Mexico and the Latin countries had great potential if UK firms could promote themselves effectively.
鈥淚t鈥檚 about raising awareness, making sure we鈥檝e got the right product and shouting out about the values of the UK in terms of quality, tradition and high welfare and sustainability,鈥� she said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 absolutely vital that as an industry, as an organisation [NFU], and as a country, we are outward looking, look abroad and engage with people to see the opportunities and the threats.鈥�
NFU Deputy President David Exwood
Adopting an export mindset
Richard Clothier, Managing Director of Wyke Farms, gave an overview of his 300-year-old family cheese business, which has a turnover of 拢175m and employs 350 people.
Producing 20,000 tonnes of cheddar and 5,000 tonnes of butter each year, the firm supplies UK retailers and exports to more than 160 countries.
He said the firm鈥檚 exports were predominantly premium added-value cheddar and butter, supported by attending trade shows and in-shop tastings across the world.
Richard said the UK had to adopt an export mindset to succeed and underlined the value of Red Tractor and farm assurance to underpin the trust in UK products abroad, particularly in the Asian market.
鈥淲e need to be patient. Export is a long-term strategy and a generational challenge 鈥� it can take 10 years just to get into one region and get some volume going,鈥� he said.
鈥淏ut I鈥檓 a massive optimist, I believe we鈥檝e got the best products in the world, produced to the highest standards. If we all work together the future鈥檚 really bright for British exports.鈥�
Opportunities ahead
During questions, the panel agreed that pursuing export opportunities encouraged firms to develop their standard and premium brands more effectively, increased their professionalism and allowed businesses to diversify their customer base and spread risk, with export markets also often offering better margins.
Looking to the future, Richard said that India and Africa presented great opportunities, especially if government support could be harnessed to drive sales. He was particularly excited by the US market鈥檚 potential if a trade deal could be agreed on the right terms 鈥� although he thought such a deal would be tricky to negotiate in the current climate and was unlikely to happen in the near term.
Sandra agreed that although geopolitics were not in a great place at the moment, we had to chase global markets where there was a demand for high-quality premium products. She added that although government had food trade initiatives, they were rather piecemeal and a more coordinated long-term strategy would pay dividends.
As David concluded: 鈥淚t鈥檚 absolutely vital that as an industry, as an organisation [NFU], and as a country, we are outward looking, look abroad and engage with people to see the opportunities and the threats. It will make us a better industry and make us more profitable - which is ultimately what it鈥檚 all about.鈥�
Meet the speakers from this session
Sandra Sullivan MBE
Director, Food & Drink Exporters Association
Sandra is a director of the Food & Drink Exporters Association (FDEA) a membership community of UK food exporters and professional service members offering peer to peer connections, expertise, contacts and access to a vibrant network.
Sandra also heads up the team at PS8, global exhibitions and events specialists in food and drink.
Sandra is a member of the Food and Drink Export Council and was awarded an MBE for her services to the food sector in 2016.
Richard Clothier
Managing Director, Wyke Farms
Rich is passionate about the potential for UK food and farming exports in a growing world population. He has a vision for UK food and agriculture being able to meet the needs of the world's growing middle classes demand for dairy products, while minimizing the impact of the environment as much as possible. Rich was named as 鈥業nternational Export Ambassador of the Year鈥� in recognition of the scale and impact of Wyke Farms鈥� global business portfolio.
Rich is passionate about farming, the environment and branding. Wyke Farms developed a groundbreaking on-site renewable energy plant, which is the cornerstone to the Wyke Farms 100% Green mission and enabled the company to be the first UK grocery brand to be 100% self-sufficient in green energy.
David Exwood
NFU Deputy President
David farms south of Horsham in West Sussex with his wife and two sons over 1200 tenanted hectares in the heart of the Sussex Weald.
Starting in 1989 with 70ha the business now has arable, dairy beef, Sussex suckler herd and sheep enterprises. In 2003 the Farm Shop opened and sells a wide range of food from the Victorian stable yard at Westons.
He has served previously within the NFU as Branch Chair, West Sussex Council Delegate, South East Regional Chair as well as four years on Governance Board.
David was elected to the position of NFU Deputy President in February 2024.
Responsibilities
- EU and international relations
- Banking
- Biodiversity
- Food labelling
- Food safety
- Food service and hospitality
- Agricultural transition (productivity, ELMs, stability)
- Plant health
- Assurance schemes
- British Agriculture Bureau
- Health, safety and wellbeing
- Agricultural transport
- Uplands
- Tenants
