It may only represent just over 1 per cent of Australia's exports but those in the know say the impending free trade agreement with the UK presents a myriad of opportunities.
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Australia's 'clean and green' image has served it well and remains important in this $4.9 billion market, however it is no longer the number one selling point.
That's according to Austrade Investment, Agribusiness and Food Centre of Excellence director Cheryl Stanilewicz.
Ms Stanilewicz said research into consumer trends in the UK had found health and sustainability were key.
"We're seeing that across the world, in developed markets particularly, and the UK is no different," she said.
"Consumers are choosing food based on what it does to their body rather than simply choosing what tastes best."
Ms Stanilewicz was one of the presenters at a breakfast exploring how producers, agtech companies and other businesses can benefit from the A-UK FTA once it is ratified.
The breakfast was hosted by Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise's SQ Export Hub on Wednesday.
Ms Stanilewicz said UK consumers want products they can trust and want to know where ingredients are sourced from.
She said consumers were also looking for products that support improving their immunity, reducing stress and improving sleep.
As a result there had been an uptick in demand for probiotics, fermented drinks and nutritional snacks.
While it was starting from a low base, Ms Stanilewicz said low- and no-alcohol drinks were booming in the UK and expected to grow by 31pc by 2024.
"The rise of the flexitarian" was also being observed in the UK and most consumers were doing this for environmental reasons in addition to the perceived health benefits.
Ms Stanilewicz said there were a lot of exporters already taking advantage of the great opportunities that the FTA would offer.
Aussie companies already experiencing success
The UK presents a lucrative market for Australia's honey producers as it is one of the world's largest consumers and imports 90pc of its honey.
Well-known Queensland brand Capilano Honey, owned by Hive + Wellness Australia, has been capitalising on this opportunity since the 2000s.
At present, there is a 16 per cent tariff but this will be immediately eliminated when the FTA enters into force.
When the FTA was signed in December 2021, Hive + Wellness opted to relaunch its product to take advantage of the soon to be level playing field.
As part of this, Hive + Wellness is working on developing QR codes to provide UK consumers with information on beekeeper profiles, floral varieties and quality standards.
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Another success story has been agtech company, AgriWebb.
Launched in Australia in 2014, AgriWebb's livestock business management software measures and provides insights into what's happening on-farm.
"AgriWebb chose the UK as its international launch market in 2018 and have been working there quite successfully," Ms Stanilewicz said.
"They were noticed by a UK-based investor that was known as Wheatsheaf, it's now known as Grosvenor Food & Agtech, and they took a minority stake in AgriWebb of A$14 million in December last year.
"This deal followed AgriWebb's acquisition of a UK-based livestock and dairy software company called FarmWizard."
Ms Stanilewicz said AgriWebb's existing cloud-based livestock herd management software had been combined with FarmWizard's dairy and individual animal management functionality to create a new product.
She said this was a great example of success between the UK and Australia that the livestock sector was benefiting from.
Advice for entering the UK market
For those considering entering this market, sage advice was offered by the UK Consul General for Queensland and Northern Territory and director of Trade Australia and New Zealand, Jo Freeman.
Her top tips for businesses were:
- Be absolutely clear about your motivation for wanting to explore the UK market or expand your operations into the UK
- Do research into marketing and consumer demographics
- Explore who your competitors will be and decide if you will be competing on price or quality
- Build your brand and don't assume it will already be recognised over there
- Developing business relationships and building trust crucial
Ms Freeman said one potential game-changer for the food and drink sector was customs authorities would release all goods within 48 hours, if requirements had been met, with fast-track parcels and perishable goods like food being released within six hours.
She said entering the UK market was a big commitment of time and resources and encouraged businesses to be sure before doing so.
While there were many similarities between the two countries she said some things would translate, while others would not.
Developing a strategic approach would save time and money in the long run and Ms Freeman encouraged businesses to be clear on the resources they had available to support their export journey.
