Responding to a parliamentary inquiry from Bernard Durkan, a Kildare Fine Gael TD, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue, disclosed that Ireland imported over €400 million worth of vegetables last year. The Central Statistics Office (CSO) routinely provides data on agri-food and prepared consumer foods trade to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM), including detailed figures on vegetable imports. For 2023, preliminary data indicated that vegetable imports reached €412 million, totaling 342,760 tonnes.
This marks a 17% increase in value and a 6% rise in volume compared to 2022, highlighting a growing trend in vegetable imports. Minister McConalogue emphasized the exclusion of vegetable-based products from these figures and underscored the importance of balancing agri-food imports with exports. Ireland saw a significant agri-food trade surplus of more than €5 billion in 2023. The minister committed to ongoing monitoring of trade trends and collaboration with stakeholders to achieve the objectives of Food Vision 2030, particularly in ensuring food safety, nutrition, and appeal.
Source: Agriland