An outsized focus on emerging industries risks marginalising those that have served as the foundation of our economy for decades, writes Salman Amin
I think we can all sign up to the government’s mission to grow the UK economy, renew the country’s competitiveness and unlock investment. After all, what business leader wouldn’t? The big question is how – and this is where I have a concern.
What strikes me is that in the race to grow, we seem to be turning our backs on the industries which have built Britain for decades. You only have to look at the list of sectors featured in the government’s industrial strategy to see this. There’s plenty of mention of aerospace, tech and green energy but you’d be hard pressed to find a substantive reference to food and drink. In my view, that’s a glaring omission.
Don’t bet the house on emerging industries
For sustained growth to happen and for it to reach all the nations and regions of the UK, it doesn’t make sense to rely on a small number of sectors. Indeed, as forecasts published by the Office for Budget Responsibility show, there’s a material risk from placing bets only on emerging industries – they may well grow but others will decline, meaning the whole economy could effectively stand still.
Economic momentum will come when we build a genuinely inclusive industrial strategy. A strategy which embraces emerging sectors and, crucially, celebrates those in which Britain is already a leader – such as food and drink.
As the CEO of a company of bakers and chocolatiers, you’d expect me to back manufacturing. But the reality is it remains the backbone of our economy. UK manufacturing generates 23 per cent of the UK’s GDP, generates five million direct and indirect jobs and delivers wages 11 per cent above the UK average.
Within manufacturing, food and drink is the largest sector. It generates £38bn, for the UK economy, from large companies like pladis and the several thousand small and medium sized firms up and down the country.
Backing food and drink is not about betting on future growth and employment, it’s about recognising jobs and wages provided today. Our sector employs 475,000 people across Britain, with the pladis business alone supporting 7,000 direct and indirect jobs across its 10 UK sites – the vast majority of which are outside London and the South East.
That’s why I passionately believe in the potential of food and drink to help grow the economy. It’s the same opportunity I saw when I joined pladis as CEO in 2019. We built a new growth strategy, energised our people behind it and supported it with investment. Our revenue has increased by 50 per cent and we are now one of the fastest growing snacks companies on an organic net sales basis versus our global peers.
So, for my sector and others to play their full role in creating the economy we want some things need to happen. We need government to lead and create a stable and certain regulatory environment in which business can flourish. And, businesses must play their part too. They must be fully engaged in the race to net zero, increase productivity and push for higher living standards.
But – ultimately – growth will only come when business and government fly in formation. By that I mean business and government need to deeply understand one another. It is only by trusting and truly understanding each other’s perspectives that we will deliver a genuinely inclusive industrial strategy. A strategy which delivers growth based on our country’s emerging economic strengths and those backbone sectors which have delivered for Britain for decades.
Salman Amin is CEO of pladis, the London headquartered owner of McVitie’s, Jacob’s, Carr’s, and Godiva