Brody Sweeney, aged 44, is a resident of Dublin's north side for the last 16 years. Married to Lulu, who runs her own business, they have four children, aged from five to fifteen. He founded O'Briens Sandwich Bars in 1988.

Today Friday July 21st, Ireland's largest exporter Dell issued another profit warning as global PC market growth slows. On Wednesday, global chip giant Intel which is Ireland's largest employer reported declining revenues and margins, as it continues a review of its worldwide operations. Both employ together about 10,000 workers in Ireland and their departure from Ireland at some point would be a devastating setback for the Irish economy.

Less than €200 million in venture capital investments in Irish companies are expected in 2006. Contrast that with commercial property investment both in Ireland and overseas, by Irish investors of €30 billion since 2001, according to Bank of Ireland Private Banking. Is this a recipe for sustained prosperity?

Irish entrepreneur Brody Sweeney is the founder of O'Brien's Sandwich Bars, which has more than 300 outlets in 12 countries, and employs nearly 3,000 people. The creator of one of Ireland's most visible and successful export brands in recent times, plans to stand as a Fine Gael Party candidate in the constituency of Dublin North-East at the next Irish General Election.

In this article Brody Sweeney sets out a strategy for the Irish economy following the peak of the housing boom and the continuation of the current decline in Foreign Direct Investment. 

GREEN IRELAND - A 20 year vision for Ireland’s Industrial & Rural Development Policy

What's the big idea ?

The main objective of this proposal is to reduce Ireland’s dependence on Foreign Direct Investment and the “knowledge” economy by putting renewed effort into Ireland’s indigenous sector, focussing in particular on Food and Tourism. This would have the added benefit of keeping rural Ireland alive with an associated environmentally friendly landscape.

Why now when the economy is booming ?

Currently one Company (Microsoft) accounts for 6% of all Irish exports. Imagine if the Microsofts, Dells, Pfizers and Intels etc. withdrew to foreign shores, where would that leave Ireland inc. ? Companies like these remain trading in Ireland for one reason only and that is - that it suits them. If for any reason foreign direct investment dries up and lets be real – the Eastern European accession states, the Indians and Chinese in particular have copped on to Irelands economic success, and are doing it better than us now – we have no plan B.

What does this article recommend ?

It makes sense to specialize if we are to be successful niche players. This document proposes that in addition to our “knowledge economy” industries, Our indigenous sector specializes in Food and Tourism and sets out a strategy to deliver.

A Long Term Vision – 20 years to 2026 

-     We maintain our FDI and high paid jobs in the knowledge economy but  we balance this by deriving up to half our export earnings from indigenous Irish owned industry

-     A new flagship brand for selling Irish Food and Tourism is developed

-     Ireland becomes No.1 brand quality specialty food producer for Europe

o       Primary Agricultural Produce

o       Processed Foods

-     A new tourism product around Family holidays for stressed out time poor, but cash rich European families, is developed and becomes the flagship product of the sector

-     Ireland’s “green” image is enhanced through environmentally friendly food production methods

-     Rural Ireland and particularly small businesses in Agriculture, Food Production, Tourism and Fishing are alive and thriving

Short Term Proposals – 5 years 2007-2012

1. A new Brand - Marketing Irish Output

- A new body like the Irish Dairy Board would be set up, with a similar business model to manage, licence and administer the new brand

- A new Irish brand would be created (like the Kerrygold model) which would have the following features: 

- A brand to market:

                        Primary Agricultural Produce

                        Processed Foods

                        Tourism

 - Promoting Irish food as safe / organic / free range / ethically farmed / additive free

- Promoting Irish Food as the premium quality food brand for Europe (like Holland for Flowers, Scotland for Whisky, France for Wine)

- The new brand would deliberately by-pass traditional methods of selling (for example to Supermarkets) until the new brand was established and had equity value

- The new brand would use three innovative methods of getting product to market

Internet Distribution

Irish focussed retail Food Halls

Farmers Markets

See Appendix I for details of these routes to market

The new brand would focus on developing a single tourist product, with the objective that Irish Tourism would be defined by it, and would be the most excellent providers of it in the world.

- Different regions around the country would be licensed to market the brand into specific markets under the Food and Tourism headings

- Protocols would be established setting standards for the new brand

2. Agriculture

- All food agencies amalgamated under 1 super agency

I am suggesting a new strategy to take Ireland  slowly away from its traditional commodity based agriculture and food processing, to a new model based on smaller scale specialised farming and food production. The farm produce would be processed in Ireland and sold into Europe under a premium quality brand, which would be created. This sustainable agricultural model would preserve the best elements of our environment and landscape, further enhancing the tourism potential of the country as the green healthy oasis of Europe. Economic development would be more evenly spread throughout the country.

This is not an either / or scenario. Most Farmers would continue Farming in the short term the way they always have been. However capable Farmers would slowly start to grow on foot of the new Brand being established above.

The Agricultural Proposals would target the following increases in the first 5 years of the scheme:

Features of new Agricultural Model:

- Farmers encouraged to move away from traditional dairying, cereal, Vegetable and livestock into the same business but under organic / additive Free / natural additives / free range / ethically farmed labels

- The new brand should ensure that a relatively higher price can be achieved than non-branded foods which are organic / free range / ethically farmed etc.

- Capable farmers would be encouraged by grant aid to open B & B’s in their homes offering farming holidays for European families under a scheme similar to Italy’s Agriturismo model

- To qualify for grants under this scheme: farmers would have to grow 30% (?) of the food they serve on their own farms

Attend training in Cookery, Hospitality management, Marketing, Business administration

3. Food processing 

-  Small scale producers assisted to set up and supply to new outlets (Appendix I)

-  Encourage Local processors supplying local markets i.e abbabtoirs, Butchers, Bakers, Cheeses, Ready Meals

-  Larger processors grant aided to stop export of wholesale commodity products, by changing to processing all these raw materials in Ireland and adding the value here

-  Town erect signs at entrance to towns proclaiming pride in a famous food – e.g. “welcome to Middleton – proud home of  Ballymaloe Relish”

-  Small scale food processors grant aided to create Tourist visiting facilities, to encourage Gourmet tourism

4. Tourism

The current state of Irish Tourism

Irish Tourism particularly outside Dublin is in serious decline. A plethora of agencies all over the country selling a multitude of missed messages – Is Ireland for Business Tourism, or Fishing or Golf or Stag weekends ?

The net results in the eyes of European consumers (despite what out Tourist Agencies would have us believe) is that Ireland doesn’t really stand for anything.

I am proposing that Ireland concentrates on becoming known throughout Europe for mainly one product (marketed under our new brand) and becomes excellent at it. I have quoted below an example from Euro Disney which explains what a single tourism product well marketed can achieve.

Eurodisney attracts 13 million visitors each year to its resort outside Paris. For many Irish parents it is almost a rite of passage to take their kids there. We took our four  kids there for a 4 day visit last year at a cost of about €5,500. Eurodisney works because apart form a fantastic brand brilliantly marketed, it feeds into our: 

            - Well known / well marketed Disney brand

- Cash rich time poor society – cramming a break into a short    period

            - Parental guilt about the amount of time we spend with our children

            - Parental desire to spend “quality time” with their children

            - Specializing in one product.

 If Ireland could  develop a new product around Family Farming Holidays, we could immediately address three of the above Eurodisney pluses

            - Short breaks for our time poor /cash rich society

            - Parental guilt about time spent with kids

            - Parental desire to spend quality time with children

 The issue of brand and single product specialization could be addressed by Government policy

-  Ireland marketed as an upmarket short break destination to wealthy European families

- Ireland marketed abroad as a natural, traditional idyll away from the over urbanisation, intensification of European life

- A new product “Family Farming Holidays” would be created and marketed to stressed out but wealthy European families as above under agriculture

- A programme like a Sail Training programme might be created whereby the Families could play / work together in a constructive way

- Families could take part in the day to day running of the family farm, participate in local culinary, recreational and leisure activities, in addition to visiting existing tourist facilities. 

Financing the proposals

Brody Sweeney

Ireland is awash with cash looking for a suitable home to invest in.

Much of this cash is being invested in bricks and mortars and much of this money is being invested overseas. There is an opportunity to bring some of this money into use to finance the proposals above.

-         The new Brand – Expenditure on the development of the new brand could be financed over the medium term by a licence fee from commercial operators of the brand. Start up costs would be relatively modest, as investment would be commensurate with the likely business the new brand would do in the early years. Funding could come from a diversion of existing marketing resources of Enterprise Ireland / Bord Bia etc.

-         Small scale Farming - A combination of the Seaside resorts renewal scheme and a type of BES scheme structured to our existing small farm base could be introduced to cover the capital investment aspects.

-         Food Processing – BES type schemes.

The investment in marketing (both food branding and tourism) could be financed by partly re-deploying existing resources and partly by extra state investment.  

Appendix I 

Routes to market for Primary and Processed Food Products

1. Retail Outlet proposal

-         A Private sector operator is licensed to franchise the brand for retail  use in Ireland and the U.K.

-   10,000 sq ft store

-   Pilot store in major U.K. City

-   Category managed – High volume products like Vegetable and Meats / Café / Specialty Foods / Farmers market  / Bakery

-         As exciting visually as Harrods Food Hall

-         Run on commercial basis

-         Start with other brands, develop own brand range

-         Acts as flagship to sell products through Supermarkets also

2. Internet Delivery Model 

-         State develops Green Ireland Brand

-         State develops website

-         Local Co-Op’s or Food Wholesalers are licenced to operate the brand in defined geographical areas – e.g. Donegal Creameries is licenced to operate the brand for Internet deliveries in Greater Manchester set up Internet delivery business

-         Website set up to market products directly to households

-         Small Farmers sell to their local Operator at a pre-determined price

-         Operator compiles individual orders, and distributes direct to households through Fedex etc.

3. Farmers Markets

      -         State develops Green Ireland brand

-         State licences operation of markets to commercial oeprator

-         Legislation enacted to require local authorities to provide / build space for the holding of weekly food markets, along the lines of the Development Act 2000 requiring developers to provide 20% social housing

-         Shopping Centre developers encouraged to provide space for “Farmers markets” as part of planning permissions

-         Farmers markets provide a natural domestic market, while providing a community hub

Appendix II

Routes to market for Tourism Product

4. Tourism

- State develops Green Ireland Brand

- State creates new Tourism product and Website

- Local Tourism organizations licensed to market products into defined geographical areas e.g. Shannon Tourism licensed to market to Germany

- Protocols established for users of the brand, defining the experience