Author: Ciara Greene

Irish Agri-Food Exports 2022: €19 Billion Growth

In 2022, Irish agri-food exports were valued at €19 billion.

2022 saw €19 billion in Irish agri-food exports, employing 165,000 people in the industry, according to the Department of Agriculture. Overall sales were up 22% from 2021.

The Department of Agriculture’s annual review and prognosis report for 2023 outline the 165,000 jobs are spread across 135,000 farms, 2,000 locations for fishing and aquaculture, 2,000 businesses that produce food and beverages, and 180 countries where agri-food goods are exported.

The United States, the Netherlands, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom continue to be the major export markets.

The sector’s greenhouse gas emissions decreased by 1.2% in 2022 compared to the previous year, according to the research.

Food, drink, and primary production supported 6.5% of total employment, mostly in rural and coastal towns. It accounted for 40% of all export sales by Irish-owned businesses.

Tirlán Dairygold Collaboration Logo

FarmGen Collaboration Unites Dairy Co-Operatives

Tirlán and Dairygold have recently announced a new collaboration, with the aim of bolstering sustainability initiatives within the dairy sector. The dairy co-operatives have united their efforts to expand the reach of the renewable energy solutions program, FarmGen, to a greater number of farming families throughout Ireland.

Initially introduced in 2019, Tirlán’s FarmGen Solar PV initiative has garnered significant interest from farm businesses looking to adopt eco-friendly technologies. Through this partnership, Dairygold suppliers can now also participate in the solar PV program as part of their transition to renewable energy solutions, effectively curbing on-farm emissions and reducing energy costs.

The solar-powered package, facilitated by the experienced technical partner PV Generation, includes cutting-edge solar PV systems and intelligent monitoring for farms.

Through the collaboration between Dairygold and Tirlán, the scope of this comprehensive solution is broadening, enabling a more widespread adoption of renewable energy on farms in an efficient manner for all parties involved.

This represents a positive step in the direction of decreasing on-farm emissions and actively contributing to the advancement of a more sustainable dairy sector.

Farmers who wish to register their interest can click here.

 

 

Variety of colourful foods in lunch box

The Lunch Bag will create 240 new full-time jobs.

A company located in Nenagh, County Tipperary, that produces hot meals for primary school students is set to hire an extra 240 employees to get ready and distribute over 100,000 free meals daily, as part of the upcoming expansion of the program. The Lunch Bag, which has been creating hot school meals for kids for the past five years, is investing €7.5 million into this expansion. They currently have 200 employees and plan to more than double their workforce next year, additionally offering part-time positions for another 450 staff responsible for assembling meals in schools.

 

This significant expansion of The Lunch Bag’s food preparation and assembly facility near Nenagh is in response to the government’s announcement of substantial plans to grow the school hot meals program in the years to come. What began as a small pilot program in 2019 involving 30 schools has now expanded to encompass 1,700 schools and 300,000 primary school students, with a cost of €94.4 million in the previous year.

 

The government’s budget includes further expansion of the scheme, allocating additional funds to cover an additional 900 non-DEIS schools and provide meals for another 150,000 students. The government’s objective is to make the free hot meals program available in every school by 2030. In light of this growing demand, The Lunch Bag is expanding its facilities and bringing on board an additional 240 employees to increase their daily meal preparation from 35,000 to 100,000 meals.

 

These meals are prepared, packaged, and individually labelled with each child’s name, then delivered to each school by truck. They are then placed in an oven by a designated food handler, also employed by The Lunch Bag, in time for distribution at the scheduled lunchtime.

Read more about The Lunch Bag on their official website here.

Vials of liquid on a white table and the logo of a large pharmaceutical company Roche

Roche acquires Telavant Holdings FOR $7.1 billion.

Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche is making a strategic move to combat the decline in its oncology sales by acquiring Telavant Holdings for a substantial $7.1 billion. This acquisition, involving rights to a promising new inflammatory bowel disease medicine called RVT-3101, signifies Roche’s expansion into diverse markets.

 

Inflammatory bowel disease affects a staggering 8 million people, presenting a significant healthcare challenge as approximately 80% of those diagnosed struggle to achieve long-lasting remission. Roche’s statement emphasises this urgent medical need.

 

Roche’s acquisition of Telavant Holdings grants them control over the creation, production, and marketing of RVT-3101 in the US and Japan. This strategic maneuver follows a series of setbacks for Roche, including late-stage trial failures in cancer immunotherapy and Alzheimer’s disease. New CEO Thomas Schinecker aims to rejuvenate the company’s reputation, and this acquisition is his first major step in that direction.

 

Schinecker has expressed a willingness to explore significant deals that align with both scientific and economic objectives. Notably, Roivant, established by US Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, played a pivotal role in this acquisition.

 

Roche’s investment extends beyond the initial $7.1 billion, as they’ve committed up to an additional $150 million, subject to meeting various developmental milestones. Sales of well-established pharmaceuticals like Herceptin, Avastin, and Rituxan are projected to decrease by 1.1 billion Swiss francs in 2023 due to the emergence of lower-cost biotech alternatives.

 

In response to promising phase 2 results against ulcerative colitis, Roche is expediting the third and final phase of clinical trials for RVT-3101, which has the potential to treat Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. This medicine belongs to a new category of drugs called anti-TL1A antibodies, which are currently attracting considerable attention in the pharmaceutical industry.

 

Roche is not alone in this venture, as pharmaceutical giants like Sanofi and Merck & Co. have also entered the anti-TL1A antibody market with substantial investments in similar treatments. Pfizer initially developed RVT-3101, but a 2022 agreement allowed Roivant to assume control over the shares of this medication outside of the US and Japan.

 

Roche is committed to making this medication accessible to patients as swiftly as possible, emphasising its potential applicability in treating other medical conditions, making this acquisition a significant milestone in the company’s diversification strategy.

pepsico logo

PepsiCo invests €39 million to expand its Little Island facility in Cork.

PepsiCo Ireland, a company that makes drinks and snacks, has just announced a new €39 million extension of its manufacturing facilities at its location in Little Island, County Cork.

This comes after an earlier this year completed investment of €127 million in the same location and the nearby research and development facilities.

The new facility will allow PepsiCo to produce more of its assortment of beverage components on Little Island, meet rising demand for current products, and play a significant part in bringing PepsiCo’s innovation pipeline to its worldwide clientele.

The company’s international brands include Mountain Dew, 7Up, Pepsi, Pepsi Max, Gatorade, and Pepsi.

The plant on Little Island will get a €2.4 million investment in a solar PV installation as part of the current expansion, which will drastically lower the amount of electricity used there.

According to PepsiCo, the new solar PV project will generate 1820 kW and have a peak capability to provide 100% of the power requirement for the factory.

The solar panels will supply 22% of the electricity needed by the site over the course of a year, it was claimed.

The company employs more than 1,250 people in Ireland, and in order to support its expansion, it has proceeded to hire more operations staff at its Cork facility, where there are currently roughly 100 open positions.

We use cookies to give you the best online experience. By agreeing you consent the use of cookies in accordance with our Privacy Statement and cookie settings in your Privacy Settings below.

Privacy Settings saved!
Privacy Settings

When you visit any website, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Control your personal Cookie Services here.

These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems.

In order to use this website we use the following technically required cookies
  • wordpress_test_cookie

Decline all Services
Accept all Services