Output (GVA)
The food and drink sector contributed £491m (GVA) to the Somerset economy in 2020. This represents 4.5% of the county’s total economic output, more than twice the national average of 1.5%. Most of this sector’s output is found in South Somerset (£183m), Sedgemoor (£152m) and Mendip (£140m), where it represented 7.2%, 5.3% and 6.8% of each district’s total output respectively.
Employment (FTE)
As with economic output, the food and drink sector contributes more by way of employment in Somerset than it does nationally. In 2020, it contributed just over 7,044 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs, 3.1% of all jobs in the county, compared to a national average of 1.5%. Again, it is Sedgemoor (2,365 jobs), South Somerset (2,340 jobs) and Mendip (1,939) where the majority of employment in this sector can be found. In terms of the percentage of jobs per district attributed to this sector, Sedgemoor (5.1%) and Mendip (4.6%) have the highest concentrations.
Productivity (GVA/FTE)
Measured as GVA per FTE job, productivity in the food and drink sector stood at £69,770 in 2020, higher than for the HotSW LEP area figure of £58,520, and higher than the national average £62,730.
Source: Economic Model for Somerset and the Heart of the South West (HotSW) LEP, 2022