Thousands of jobs in the food industry are extremely vulnerable to a no-deal Brexit, according to Enterprise Ireland CEO Julie Sinnamon. Announcing Enterprise Ireland’s End of Year statement on Wednesday, Sinnamon said an analysis by Enterprise Ireland of all its clients suggests as many as 25,000 jobs would be vulnerable and at risk to a no-deal Brexit.

Food companies account for the majority of Enterprise Ireland’s clients and are especially exposed to Brexit given the tariffs food staples such as beef and dairy would attract under a no-deal scenario.

“The food industry is the most exposed sector under a no-deal scenario and WTO tariffs,” said Sinnamon. “In the last year, we’ve allocated €75m in Brexit funding to our clients and food companies have been allocated by far the largest share of this funding. We’ve engaged with more than 200 food companies on the Brexit agenda,” she added.

For 2018, Enterprise Ireland said the net job creation of its client base was just over 9,100, with almost two thirds (61%) of these jobs created outside of Dublin.