Looking to investment

IRELAND will have to attract more multinational investment if the food industry is to develop in the wider European market, according to Northern Foods chairman, Mr Christopher Haskins.

While the sector's first priority must be to increase its share of the domestic market, he said, it would continue to struggle to succeed in Europe without the support of multinationals.

In Ireland, there were "too many imports" leaving indigenous companies with an "inadequate" share of the local market, he said.

Mr Haskins, who was speaking at the IBFC conference on achieving business excellence in Ireland, warned that the food industry must pursue these changes and invest in new technologies to underpin economic growth and prosperity.

Also speaking at the conference yesterday, the managing director of Temple Bar Properties, Ms Laura Magahy, said joint projects between the public and private sector were the best way to develop the city of Dublin.

It is up to the public sector to develop the framework within which the private sector can work, according to Ms Magahy. Future projects should also seek funding from the National Lottery, she told delegates.

"What Dublin needs now is an amplification of the vision that made projects like Temple Bar and the IFSC a reality.

Approaching the millennium, Ms Magahy suggested that a coherent public and private sector endeavour should be based on two of Dublin's best features, focusing on Ireland's strong cultural tradition.