According to the Enterprise Minister for Northern Ireland, Arlene Foster, Irish food companies seem to be beating the recession through increased sales outside of the country. Northern Ireland is a major supplier of food and drink to Britain, the Irish Republic and even farther afield, and both sales and employment have increased due to recent success in output sales figures.

Ms Foster has released figures demonstrating that output has increased by 10% and employment by 2.9%, providing a big boost to those looking for food jobs. Northern Ireland already employs over 19,000 people in food jobs, and this figure is set to rise if the current market success is sustained.

Other encouraging facts and figures:

• At the last count, the food industry in Northern Ireland was worth £3 billion a year
• £600 million worth of products were sold to non-UK markets
• The Northern Ireland food and drink industry provided 15% of all total products exported from the country
• The proportion of goods sold outside of Northern Ireland has risen to more than 60%

These impressive figures are proof of the industry's success, which the Enterprise Minister believes can be attributed to a number of factors, notably, the strong partnership between farmers and producers. The minister also praised the originality and quality of exported products, and the professionalism, focus and dedication to excellent customer service shown by food and drink companies, which she also believes are a large part of the industry's success.