Export is Helping Safeguard Our Future in Wales

Exporting has changed the way we think about our future at Calon Wen. For a cooperative of 25 family-run organic farms, it has never just been about growth for its own sake. It has been about spreading risk beyond a UK market dominated by a handful of retailers and finding opportunities in places where demand is expanding more quickly.

Since we began exporting in 2017, the balance of our business has shifted, and it has made us stronger.

Wales is in a fortunate position. Food and drink is treated as a priority sector by Welsh Government, and the support for producers who want to export reflects that. I cannot overstate the role it has played for us. Without it, we would not have broken into international markets. With it, we have been able to explore opportunities with more confidence and build on them. But the support only works if you use it. It doesn’t come to you – you have to take the step.

Our first move overseas was a trade mission to the UAE. What made it worthwhile was the preparation we had done before we left. With help from the Welsh Government’s support programmes and Project HELIX, we carried out a desktop exercise that gave us a clear view of retail values, product pricing and the overall scale of the market. That knowledge meant we weren’t just wandering around shops in another country – we knew what we were looking for.

Preparation matters, because there are always pitfalls. Regulations can change suddenly, leaving you with shipments delayed or products that no longer meet new requirements. We have experienced that ourselves, most notably when we had gone a long way towards supplying the USA, only to discover that their organic standards didn’t align with ours. It was a setback, but it forced us to adapt. Now, before entering any new market, we put more time into understanding the detail, speaking to distributors, wholesalers and consolidators to reduce risk.

There are also practical choices to make about how you export. For us, working with UK-based consolidators has been effective. It is less glamorous and it does mean giving up some control over the brand, but it takes away much of the logistical burden. For producers who are starting out, it can be a good way of breaking into new markets without being exposed to every compliance and certification challenge from the outset.

My advice to other producers is clear: do your research and make full use of the support available in Wales. The opportunities are there, but they require time, preparation and resilience. Exporting has not been without its challenges for Calon Wen, but it has allowed us to grow beyond the limits of the UK market and given our cooperative a stronger, more sustainable future.

Stuart McNally talks about this and more in the Food and Drink podcast episode Taking Welsh Food and Drink Global. Listen to the podcast here.

Find out more about the support on offer to Welsh food and drink producers here.