Minister Creed, who is travelling with a delegation from Bord Bia and Irish exporters, met his Moroccan counterpart Aziz Akhannouch as well as the head of the local food safety authority. He acknowledged the recent expansion of the list of Irish products allowed into Morocco and said he hoped to progress other outstanding applications.
“Irish dairy exports to Morocco, particularly butter, cheese and caseins were worth almost €13m last year and we expect this figure to grow by over 60% in 2016,” Creed said. Figures from the Department of Agriculture show that dairy accounts for 90% of Irish agri-food exports to Morocco.
Buyers
Business meetings and visits in the Moroccan dairy sector included Copralim, the country’s largest importer of dairy products. Figures presented on a tour of the cheese processing facility show that Copralim, imports milk powder, butter and cheddar from Ireland. It has increased the volume of produce it has bought in Ireland in recent years which purchasing manager, Abdelaziz Lamhaimer, explains is part of the overall growth strategy for the company.
“The consumption of cheese is increasing day after day in Morocco, not only this but also our brand has become one of the best brands in the Moroccon market in processed cheese,” Lamhaimer said in an interview with the Irish Farmers Journal.
When purchasing ingredients he said “the most important factor is quality, sustainability. That’s why we focus on importing our raw material from Ireland because for our production managers Irish products are rich in proteins. We are always told by our people to try to import either Irish product, Australian product or other specific origins.”
However he did state that price is a limiting factor.
Building upon existing trade
Dr Abderahman Benlekhal, director of the Moroccan dairy industry federation, told the Irish Farmers Journal that this trade mission was an opportunity to build upon existing trade with Ireland.
“We already work with numerous Irish companies, whether it is for dairy or meat,” he said, praising “the reputation of Irish livestock farming around the world”.
Minister Creed said that the visit aimed at “raising the profile even further”. This includes promoting Ireland’s sustainability credentials under the Bord Bia’s Origin Green programme. Although Dr Benlekhal admitted that he was hearing about Origin Green for the first time this week, he added: “I want to know more. We are very much interested in sustainable production, especially for dairy.”
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