Mark Prentice: Scots food and drink sector has room to grow

However, economic challenges and shifting global markets mean the sector – now valued at £10 billion – needs to evolve to embrace opportunities further afield.

As Lloyds Banking Group discovered in its 2012 Scottish Food and Drink Report, almost half of businesses in the industry are planning to target one or more new international market over the coming year.

Scotland’s traditional export market has been the European Union. Last year Scottish exports – including food and drink – to the Continent rose by 14.7 per cent, compared with a rise of 8.7 per cent to Asia. However, continued economic instability across the eurozone combined with one of the worst recessions the region has ever witnessed presents a growing threat.

In sharp contrast to the EU, the emerging so-called Bric economies – Brazil, Russia, India and China – have bucked the global downward trend and are becoming increasingly influential leaders in trade. Recent statistics suggest the four nations, which together contain more than a third of the world’s population, have a combined nominal GDP of $13.6 trillion (about £8.8 trillion). The anticipated rise of other emerging markets and a rapidly increasing global middle class all offer a golden opportunity for Scotland’s food and drink industry – as newer economies grow, so does their hunger for quality produce.

In 2009, 55 countries around the world imported fresh Scottish salmon. Meanwhile, global shipments of Scotch whisky reached £1.8bn in the first six months of 2011. We are championed as world leaders in beef, with 170,000 tonnes shipped overseas in 2009 alone.

I believe now is the best time for manufacturers to take “product Scotland” to new markets. In difficult economic conditions, Scotland’s food and drink industry has outperformed many other sectors. With a targeted approach, that trend should continue.

• Mark Prentice is Lloyds Banking Group’s area director for Edinburgh and East of Scotland.