Donna Fordyce bringing seafood perspective to UK Food and Drink Export Council

The recent launch of a U.K.-wide Food and Drink Export Council by the Department for International Trade heralds a new era for British exports, according to Seafood Scotland Chief Executive Donna Fordyce, who will be serving on the council representing the seafood industry.

The initiative, set up in response to one of 22 recommendations from a 2021 Trade and Agricultural Commission report, aims to boost U.K. food and drink exports in the post-Brexit and post-Covid trading environment.

“Our task was to advise the U.K. government on how best to advance the interests of farmers, food producers, and consumers in future trade agreements,” Trade and Agricultural Commission Chair Tim J. Smith said in the report.

The need to identify a better trading environment and boost the country’s exports has taken on urgency as poor productivity, a weak business investment, inadequate public services, the damage to trade done by Brexit, compounded by a slow recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and the global energy crisis, have taken a toll on the U.K. economy. The nation will face one of the worst recessions and weakest recoveries in the G7 this year, according to the Financial Times.

The new council brings together representatives of the food and drink industry, with government export leads for the four devolved administrations (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales), in a collaborative approach.

Fordyce told SeafoodSource she is “honored to be able to contribute to the council, which is very much focused on actions.”

“Premium Scottish seafood is highly prized in many key markets around the world, and we work hard to maintain our presence as an individual nation. However, by collaborating and sharing expertise across the rest of the U.K., we can support all food and drink producers to increase exports to existing markets, identify new opportunities for their products, and be part of the economic growth agenda,” Fordyce said.

Fordyce said she plans to tout Scotland’s success in promoting its seafood to the council, and its collaborative approach in working with Scotland Food and Drink’s partnership between industry and the Scottish government.

“I am keen to see that this work is not duplicated through future U.K. efforts, which could cause confusion, but that new initiatives amplify and enhance our own efforts,” she said.

The report also recommends more of Scotland’s fish be landed in the U.K. rather than overseas. Gougeon said a new landing obligation that came into force in January 2023 will ...

Photo courtesy of Seafood Scotland