The UK's minister of state for agriculture and food has said the food and drink industry plays a crucial role in driving economic recovery.
Jim Paice, MP told the Food & Drink Expo at Birmingham's NEC that the sector is responsible for over 3.5m jobs and 7 per cent of UK Gross Value Added.
"We have a reawakened interest in the food and drink industry as part of Britain's economic recovery - it is the largest manufacturing sector in the UK with a gross added value of £24.6bn (€29bn)," he said.
"It plays a key role in driving strong and sustainable growth, particularly through exports and in developing its overseas markets.
"Food and drink exports from the UK in 2010 saw the sixth consecutive year of growth in value to £16bn (€19bn) and provisional figures for 2011 indicate that we will perform even better, breaking the £16.5bn (€19.7bn) mark."
The speech follows the launch of the government's Exports Action Plan that aims to develop links in emerging markets and remove trade barriers to assist small and medium-sized enterprises build-up business from outside the UK.
Paice concluded that the UK has a world class reputation for innovation.
“We want to harness this strength and use it to the economic advantage of the whole country. We can maintain a thriving, sustainable and profitable UK food and drink sector that can compete with the best in the world,” he said.
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