F&B segment doing the ‘heavy lifting’ for New Zealand’s economy

By RJ Whitehead

- Last updated on GMT

Photo: iStock
Photo: iStock

Related tags New zealand Milk

The New Zealand Food & Grocery Council has welcomed the release of the government’s latest guide to investing in the country’s food and beverage industry, which details a number of high-value segments that continue to see significant growth. 

Chief executive Katherine Rich said the resource confirmed that investment by companies in product diversification and added-value products has resulted in excellent growth.

NZ Food companies know the value of innovation, diversification, and adding value to their food and beverage products. This will pay big dividends in rapidly growing export markets as the population of middle class consumers continues to increase​.”

The report, which is published each year by the Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment, singled out 23 emerging high-value categories that now produce NZ$2bn (US$1.3bn) worth of exports a year. These have been growing at 12% each year over the past decade.

The report proves again that the food and beverage sector is doing a lot of the heavy lifting for the New Zealand economy. It now comprises 46% of New Zealand’s exports of goods and services—NZ$30.7bn [US$20.2bn] of the total of $66.2 billion​,” said Rich.

It’s not surprising that the sectors identified by the report as showing the greatest potential to grab these opportunities are ones where New Zealand could have a competitive advantage: infant formula, mussels, nutritionals, honey, pet food, biscuits, soft drinks, beef jerky, avocados, UHT milk, chocolate, and French fries​.”

She said the sector was always looking for investment to grow export opportunities, and noted the importance for companies to take advantage of the opportunities identified by the report.

To achieve the Government’s goal of increasing exports by 40% by 2025, each of these categories needs to continue to grow. This report will play a critical role in informing this plan​,” Rich said.

Related topics Markets Oceania Industry growth

Related news

Follow us

Products

View more

Webinars

Food & Beverage Trailblazers

F&B Trailblazers Podcast