Given the current low commodity prices, and with pressure on farm incomes, it is probably not ideal timing to be trying to get farmers enthused about marketing and selling our produce, or that 2016 has been designated as the year of food and drink in NI.

While recognising that fact, John Best, chair of food promotion body, Food NI, maintains it is essential that farming organisations continue to promote the high-quality food that comes from NI.

His argument is that we must position ourselves for when improved returns do come from the market.

Speaking at the annual conference of the NI Institute of Agricultural Science (NIIAS) last week, Best said that if we are to achieve sustainable returns from the market, we must differentiate ourselves. Otherwise, the industry here will just be competing on price with low-cost suppliers from elsewhere.

Cycle

As well as getting more from the market, the other major challenge for the food industry must be to break the cycle of low food prices.

Figures presented by Best show that in 1960, food accounted for 25% of household income spend. Today, the figure is just 11%, with leisure activities now accounting for 22% of household income.

“The consumer has a very wide choice and we must have an organisation to promote the benefits of local produce and stimulate market demand,” said Best.

Environment

He also maintained that farmers here place considerable emphasis on managing the environment, but profitability at farm level is essential to allow farmers to maintain those high standards.

There is also a danger that future government targets around issues such as climate change could result in production and processing moving to other parts of the world who are less engaged with their responsibilities around the environment, said Best.

One of the most innovative agri-food companies in NI is Linden Foods, which has worked hard in recent years to differentiate itself from competitors in red meat.

That probably comes from the fact that the company was among the last to get into supplying meat in retail packs to the major British supermarkets. At the time of the BSE beef ban introduced in 1996, the then Dungannon Meats teamed up with Sainsbury’s. Foyle went into business with Tesco and ABP became a major supplier to Asda.

That left Linden trying to do something different to the others – targeting top-end retailers such as Marks and Spencer. In early 2011, the company opened a new £10m retail-packing and product innovation centre in Dungannon.

Head of innovation and new product development at Linden Foods is Elaine Willis, who told the NIIAS conference that it was vital to continually develop new and improved products. Without innovation a company would end up just competing on price, she said.

She maintained that a new innovative product must be better and/or less expensive than the competition.

It must be marketed at the right time and satisfy a consumer need. Key to that is to understand consumer behaviour. “We must all understand that we are not typical consumers. We need to take time out to see things through their eyes,” said Willis.

Modern consumers increasingly want healthy food with lower carbohydrates. They eat out more and want more convenience. “We used to work on having a product that could be cooked and ready in 30 minutes. It is now 15 to 20 minutes,” she said.

Consumers are also more into ‘‘joyning’’ – a term to describe socialising together while sharing food.

Local

When it comes to buying local, Willis maintained that many consumers in Europe consider product from here to be ‘‘local’’. It is seen as being ‘‘within their neighbourhood’’. Generally, they don’t get the nuisances of politics here, and consider all our produce as being Irish.

In an attempt to exploit the European market, Linden launched a new brand called Turf & Clover last year. It promotes all things Irish – the rain, the soil and the grass.

Trends

Looking ahead to major events such as Christmas 2016, and given the latest trends, Willis talked about providing consumers with something that is different, special and perhaps even personalised to each consumer. “We can’t put the consumer’s name on it, but we can bring the consumer closer to the butcher or the farmer,” she said.

What hasn’t changed in recent years, however, has been the importance of being environmentally aware and producing food in an ethical way. “It is more important than ever, especially to our customers and buyers,” she concluded.

Need to sort the Irish question

The final speaker at the NIIAS annual conference was Michael Bell, the chief executive of the NI Food and Drink Association (NIFDA).

He outlined the growth in the local food and drinks sector, particularly since the lifting of the beef ban (due to BSE) in 2006, when total sales were just over £2.5bn. By 2014, sales were approaching £4.8bn.

“We are doing extremely well in Britain, but there is huge potential for more,” he said.

‘‘The latest available figures suggest that the UK exports just under £20bn per year of food, feed and drink, but imports over £40bn, a deficit of over £20bn per year.

While there are clear opportunities to sell into Britain, Bell also believes there is significant untapped market potential outside of Europe. He is clearly frustrated that a proposed food marketing body in NI is yet to become operational. “The future of our industry is bright, but we need to get on with it,” he said.

He also outlined the opposition of the local food industry to a British exit from the EU, describing the possibility as “an unknown risk”.

Labelling

On a more local issue, Bell highlighted ongoing concerns about new labelling legislation introduced in 2015, which required processors to put the country of rearing and of slaughter on to meats such as lamb, pork and poultry. The upshot of that has been some resistance from south of the Irish border to NI processors using the term ‘‘Irish’’ on product.

“We have been told that it is potentially misleading. But is it not equally misleading for us to use the term ‘British’? It is a very difficult area, and something that needs sorted out if we are going to sell into countries such as China,” said Bell.

He pointed out that under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement, citizens in NI can obtain either ‘‘Irish’’ or ‘‘British’’ citizenship. He argued that the same should apply to NI food.