Food and drink sector

The Regional Economic Strategy (RES) identifies the food and drink sector as a key sector for significant potential growth. The sector will be instrumental in the region’s aim of creating a dynamic region with innovative creative businesses competing successfully in a global economy.

The food and drink manufacturing sector is a key economic driver for the East Midlands. Gross value added (GVA) of the food sector in the East Midlands accounted for around 11.4% in 2000 – £1,639 million (defra). Along with Yorkshire and Humber regions, the East Midlands is the country’s biggest food manufacturing centre, and accounts for around 21% of food sector employment, again the highest in the UK (defra).

Distinct features of the East Midlands food industry:

• It contributes significantly to regional manufacturing GVA (around 13%).
• It has a high proportion of employment in rural areas.
• Food manufacturing in the region employs a higher proportion of staff than the UK.
• The East Midlands’ manufacturing sector showed stability and growth, it declined elsewhere in the UK by 2%.
• Storage, transport and wholesale are particularly strong, this is due to the geographic location of the region and also the M1 corridor. There has been a large increase in employment of 8%, elsewhere employment declined by 13%.
• There are sections of the East Midlands food economy that have grown less than the UK, these are at the end of the supply chain e.g. retail, eating and drinking.
• The sections of the East Midlands economy that have grown more than the UK figure tend to be further back along the supply chain e.g. manufacturing, farming.

For more infromation about the innovation support available to the food and drink sector visit the Food and Drink iNet.