YESTERDAY SAW an upbeat update from IDA Ireland, the agency charged with attracting international investment here, showing a record 13,000 jobs were created by IDA-supported companies last year.

One sector notably absent, however, was the food and drink industry. Despite Government rhetoric about the economic importance of the agri-food sector, no food or drink company was included in the 61 new companies that located in Ireland in 2011.

The IDA had a simple explanation: the food and drink sector is not under its remit, but instead falls under the remit of Enterprise Ireland, the agency charged with encouraging Irish companies, including the export-heavy indigenous food sector, to export.

This anomalous situation has evolved for historical reasons, with the food sector falling under the control of the Department of Agriculture rather than the Department of Enterprise. The fact that the multinational food companies that do operate here, such as Danone, have such a huge impact on the sub-supply food chain, and hence Enterprise Ireland food companies, is another reason.

To complicate matters further, the IDA is involved in some inward investments from food companies, such as Kellogg’s decision to locate its European headquarters in Ireland.

That the functions of Enterprise Ireland and the IDA often intersect, particularly in their overseas offices, is not surprising. Nonetheless, the absence of a specific Government agency FDI strategy for the food sector is a cause for concern.

The IDA has traditionally recruited companies by sector, for example the biotech cluster in the west, the pharma sector in the south and the move to encourage digital companies to Dublin. That no sectoral focus exists for the food and drink sector is startling.

There is no reason why the tax regime, skilled workforce and pro-business culture that attract other companies here should not hold similar attractions for food ingredients and food manufacturing companies.

Resistance from indigenous food companies and producers – particularly the agricultural sector – may have something to do with it, but now may be the time to look at focused State support for inward international investment in the food sector, rather than relying on the private sector to generate growth in the area.