NORTHERN Ireland's agri-food sector was another volatile year ahead, Danske Bank has said.
The institution held its annual Agri Economic Outlook Breakfast yesterday and heard about "multiple threats" in 2016.
The bank's head of agriculture relations John Henning said the sector must look innovative ways to deal with global price volatility.
“Our farmers need to focus on what is in their control. They can’t control the global price of milk or beef, but farmers can focus on what they can control at farm level. That means farm efficiency, supply chain management, succession planning and making sure their business acumen matches technical performance."
Mr Henning said uncertainty around the future of the UK's position in the European Union was among major concerns for the farming industry.
“The ‘Brexit’ uncertainty also looms on the horizon and we still require clarity on the levels of future agricultural support and an alternative policy to the current CAP. That said, we know that local farmers and producers are extremely resilient to change and Danske Bank is committed to supporting them as they strive to succeed in 2016," he said.
Danske Bank's chief economist in the north Angela McGowan forecast minor growth for the sector.
“Danske Bank is forecasting growth of around 1.9 per cent for the agriculture sector over the course of the next year and around 1.2 per cent in 2017. We expect the global economy to grow by 3.3 per cent this year and 3.5 per cent next year as the world’s largest economies continue to grow. Chinese growth is expected to stabilise at 6.7 per cent and the US should grow by roughly 2.5 per cent. It is encouraging too that one of our main export markets, the Republic of Ireland, is now the fastest growing economy in Europe.”
