Food Drink Ireland (FDI) has welcomed the announcement by the European Commission of State aid approval for a €200 million capital investment scheme in agri-food processing and marketing.
“FDI has repeatedly called for exceptional State aid supports as we face the likelihood of a hard and disruptive Brexit, and a fracture of the Single Market,"
said Paul Kelly, FDI Director.
"The Irish agri-food and drink sector is uniquely exposed, presenting a compelling case for exceptional State aid support to minimise the economic fallout and job losses."
Remaining Competitive
Kelly highlighted that the focus must be on maintaining markets in the UK, developing other markets and ensuring that in the domestic market, companies remain competitive against Import
"The scheme must introduce investment aids to support Irish agri-food companies as they invest in enabling technology, plant renewal and expansion, refinancing, market development and innovation to regain competitiveness and must apply across the full range of Annex 1 products.” He said
FDI said that it looks forward to working with Government and Enterprise Ireland to ensure the scheme meets these objectives and is operational as soon as possible.
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