Tailored support will help UK mid-sized businesses boost exports
22 January 2014
Tailored support will help UK mid-sized businesses boost exports
Food and Drink Federation (FDF) welcomes today's announcement that Trade Minister, Lord Livingston, will personally write to each of the UK's 8,900 mid-sized businesses by this summer asking if they would like trade support from UK Trade and Investment (UKTI).
Research carried out by FDF has indicated that awareness of UKTI and UKTI's services amongst food and drink mid-sized businesses is relatively low and this new initiative should help to raise awareness of the support that Government can offer.
It is also a promising sign that UKTI is able to adapt its services to suit the needs of mid-sized business, which often fall between the cracks of support on offer to small and large enterprises. The UK's 350 food and drink mid-sized businesses generate £25 billion annually – a quarter of total industry turnover – and as such, are a constituency too valuable to overlook.
Steve Barnes, FDF's Director of Economic Commercial Services, said:
“Mid-sized businesses are vitally important to the food and drink manufacturing industry, accounting for over a quarter of our total turnover. Most of these businesses are already exporting but many simply react to overseas enquiries, rather than proactively seeking out export opportunities."
"We welcome this action from Lord Livingston and UKTI, which we hope will further encourage UK food and drink mid-sized businesses to export. Tailored support will help them better identify overseas opportunities and advise them on where best to focus their resources. Exploiting this untapped growth potential essential if we are to keep up with our European competitors, who are currently outperforming us on food and drink exports.”
Note for editors
- The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) is the voice of the food and drink manufacturing industry – the UK's largest manufacturing sector.
- FDF is committed to helping food and drink business access export opportunities. We organise export events and have also published '10 Steps to Export Success', a free guide for food and drink small and medium-sized enterprises, available at: http://www.fdf.org.uk/exports/10-steps-to-export-success.aspx
- FDF also publishes a food and drink export report twice per year – the 2013 full-year report is due for issue in spring 2014. Our most recent report is available for download.
- UK Trade Investment is the government department that helps UK-based companies succeed in the global economy. For more information, visit www.ukti.gov.uk or visit the online newsroom.
More information
Anna Taylor on 020 7420 7118 Email: Anna.Taylor@fdf.org.uk
Helena O'Neill on 020 7420 7140 Email: Helena.ONeill@fdf.org.uk
Avni Raval on 020 7420 7131 Email: Avni.Raval@fdf.org.uk
For FDF's policy positions and background on key issues, go to our Policy section.
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