Bord Bia has yesterday announced a €1,000,000 investment in beef marketing across key UK and EU markets this autumn to support the Irish farming sector.
Bord Bia’s autumn promotional activities this year will specifically spotlight Irish quality assured steak in the UK, Belgium and Italy with stewing cuts being the hero product in the Netherlands.
Funding has been allocated to the campaign to deliver a suite of both trade and consumer advertising. In Belgium, the campaign features on prominent food magazine and retail media outlets, while in Italy a fully integrated marketing programme, promoting Irish Grass Fed Beef, combines outdoor advertising in Milan, connected TV advertising, retail media activations with leading retailers and targeted digital and influencer marketing to build consumer awareness and drive demand.
The Dutch campaign includes activation across multiple retailers, and collaborations with key consumer influencers, as well as an extensive digital campaign across multiple platforms. In the UK, Bord Bia is promoting Irish steaks with key retail partners, including an organic Irish beef promotion with a leading online retailer.
Twelve Irish beef and sheep farmers are also travelling this week to Paris with Bord Bia to attend SIAL, the world’s largest food and drink tradeshow. The trip is aimed at providing farmers with a unique opportunity to see first-hand how Ireland's livestock sector is represented on the global stage.
Speaking in Paris at SIAL, Bord Bia CEO Jim O’Toole said: “Bord Bia is investing almost €1 million in a targeted beef promotion campaign across Europe and the UK this autumn to support demand for Irish beef at a time of heightened inflationary pressures and continued cost-of-living challenges. Recognising the pressures facing both consumers and the beef sector, these activities are designed to reinforce the value and quality credentials of Irish beef and drive retail sales across key export markets.”
“Supporting companies at international trade shows is part of Bord Bia’s bread and butter work behind the scenes. While it may not always be visible to our farming stakeholders, it plays an important role in growing our exports, which underpin Irish farm incomes. We are delighted to welcome these farmers to SIAL, where they can see our market development work first-hand, meet customers of Irish beef and sheepmeat, and gain a greater understanding of international trade and market dynamics.”
Bord Bia's focus at SIAL is to support Irish companies in meeting key customers from across retail, foodservice and manufacturing sectors while generating new commercial opportunities in international markets. With over 285,000 food industry professionals and 7,500 exhibitors from around the world expected to participate, SIAL provides a unique opportunity for Irish companies to meet both existing customers and prospective new buyers, strengthen commercial relationships and generate new business opportunities across international markets. An expected 85% of visitors are travelling from outside France, showcasing the exhibition as a gateway to customers from across Europe, the Middle East, Asia and beyond.
Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Noel Grealish, T.D. is also attending SIAL, meeting with key French and Dutch customers of Irish beef.
"Ireland's success as a global exporter of food and drink is built on the quality and sustainability credentials delivered by our farmers every day,” he said. “Events such as SIAL are an important opportunity to demonstrate those strengths to customers from around the world and reinforce Ireland's position as a trusted supplier of premium food products."
The travelling farmers will join Bord Bia and 14 Origin Green-verified Irish food companies exhibiting at the trade show SIAL Paris, providing a unique opportunity to see first-hand how Ireland's livestock sector is represented on the global stage and how international customer relationships help drive demand for Irish beef and lamb.
Minister Grealish added: "It is particularly valuable that Irish beef and sheep farmers have the opportunity to attend the exhibition and experience first-hand how Ireland presents itself to international customers, and to demonstrate how verified sustainability and quality standards strengthen global trade relationships. Trade shows like this also showcase how export markets are developed and maintained, and the important role they play in supporting that success."
As well as attending SIAL, the farmers will participate in a retail tour and meet leading French chefs who act as ambassadors for Irish beef as members of Bord Bia’s Chefs’ Irish Beef Club. They will also visit French beef and dairy farms to exchange knowledge and compare farming systems.
