Drinks industry exports total €1.4bn

Exports from Ireland’s drinks sector are worth € 1.4 billion, a new report shows, with the drinks manufacturing sector exporting 45 per cent of its total turnover of €3.1 billion.

The data comes from the 2012 Census of Industrial Production (CIP), the most comprehensive official data source on the sector, published recently by the CSO.

The survey also reveals that the sector employs close to 3,500 people across the country directly; it has a wage and salary pay-out of € 209.6million; it invested €118.4 million in the Irish economy in 2012; and the average wages and salaries amongst drinks manufacturers are the highest of the manufacturing sectors.

Tom Burke, senior executive at the Alcohol Beverage Federation of Ireland (ABFI), which represents alcoholic drinks manufacturers and suppliers in Ireland, said that the drinks manufacturing sector makes a significant contribution to the Irish economy.

However, he warned that the ability of the sector “to reach its full potential and achieve sustainable growth is being put at risk by the Government who have increased excise on alcohol in the last two budgets”.

“ Irish drinks manufacturers, such as the small whiskey producers, will be unable to sell their high-quality products in the home market, which will have a knock on effect on Irish farmers and publicans hoping to get a boost from the exciting developments in the sector,” he said.