I have always championed the food and drink industry in Scotland. It’s incredibly instrumental in growing the country’s profile around the world, and supports businesses, communities and families along the way.  

 

So I wasn’t at all surprised to read that food and drink has now emerged as one of Scotland’s best performing and fastest growing sectors.

Worth £14.4 billion annually, it now has 119,000 people working within it, and food manufacturing in Scotland is growing at twice the rate of the UK average for the sector – fantastic figures by anyone’s standards.

Not willing to rest and glow in this great achievement, industry body Scotland Food and Drink has drawn up Ambition 2030 – a plan to more than double the food and drink sector to £30 billion by 2030, making it Scotland’s most valuable industry.

I was pleased to see First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon supporting this new strategy. As the name suggests, Ambition 2030 it indeed ambitious, but I believe it can work – even with the political uncertainty surrounding Brexit and around the possibility of a second referendum in Scotland.

Scotland Food and Drink has worked closely with representatives from sectors within food and drink – including fishing and farming - to make sure all bases are covered. Encouraging a joint approach and getting those who matter to buy into the idea is a really smart move and will help drive things forward.

The plan also will reinforce the benefits of a career in the industry, and will focus on attracting talent into farming, fishing, food and drink.

Engaging with education and training providers to showcase the benefits of getting into the industry will inspire young people and help them find fulfilling, skilled jobs in a fantastic sector that’s growing all the time.

Not so long ago, if you had said Scotland’s food and drink sector would be worth over £14 billion, you would have been laughed at.

Ten years ago, the sector was flat and figures were poor – but we’ve capitalised on our fantastic natural larder, iconic products, strong global brands, excellent provenance credentials and industry innovations, to turn it into one of our top economic drivers.

We should be focused on getting rid of the deep fried pizzas and Mars bars image, and instead look forward to telling the stories of our quality meat, sustainable seafood and iconic whiskies.

Just look at the fantastic work being carried out by AG Barr, Chivas Brothers, the Scottish Salmon Company, Baxters, Tennent’s to turn their produce into recognised brands across the globe.

They’re making high quality, popular products – and their success is creating thousands of jobs in communities all over the country.   

Micro-brewers and distillers are also at an all-time high and start-up businesses who home in on our renewed love for local produce are thriving. This is all fantastic news for the industry, and for Scotland Food and Drink’s ambitious plan.

I look forward to seeing how the plan progresses, but in the meantime I will raise a dram of Scotland’s other nation drink – Irn Bru –  to toast its success.

 

SIDE

Our unstable political climate is leaving some businesses susceptible to being bought over by companies overseas, according to a flurry of newspaper reports I’ve read recently.

Many industry commentators reckon that the weak pound has made some price tags very attractive to buyers abroad who are looking for business bargains.

Some would even say that buying business in the UK is easier than anywhere else in the world, as our takeover rules are driven by financiers working for incentives.

The latest British business to receive an overseas offer was Unilever, the big company behind the Flora and Stork butter and margarine brands. It recently rejected talks on a £6 billion sale to American conglomerate KRAFT, which sparked ferocious debate – and Unilever is now reviewing the return it can realistically offer its shareholders. 

Don’t get me wrong, there are exceptions: if a larger and more financially stable company can support and strengthen a business and prevent it from going into administration – I’m all for it.

But it would be such a shame to see a raft of home-grown companies sold on and managed by overseas markets, when they’re doing perfectly well in the UK.

I was pleased to hear a bit of good news for Scottish clothing retailer Ness last week. The business has been bought out of administration by Edinburgh-based retail and property company Kiltane Group – meaning that 35 jobs are saved.

I really hope we’ll see a similar outcome in the coming weeks for footwear brand Brantano, which has announced it has gone into administration, putting 1,000 UK jobs at risk.

 

LAUGH

A lot can be said for keeping up appearances and presenting our cities in the best possible light, and keeping our iconic sculptures in good condition is a big part of that.  

Last week, two steel maintenance workers were lifted 100ft in the air in a cherry picker to carry out vital work on one of the country’s most well-known artistic structures – the Kelpies.

Each 30m high, 300-tonne sculpture had a full MOT to make sure it was in tip top condition – and even the pearly whites got a check-up!

Bringing thousands of visitors to Scottish shores every year is a big job and the mythical water horses do it very well. Even though it takes time and requires investment, it’s so important that large-scale landmarks like this are maintained.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WEEP

Sesame Street has been on our TV screens for almost 50 years, but it’s only been in recent times that producers have introduced characters who are living with different conditions and in different domestic circumstances.  

I was really pleased hear that a new character with autism is joining the show. But it’s so sad that it’s taken so long for this to happen.

The new character, Julia, will introduce some very important life lessons to youngsters watching the show. Her interactions with other characters will help viewers – young and old – learn more about what it’s like living with autism.

 

Sesame Street has a strong viewing fanbase and there’s no doubt that it will be around for many years to come. Let’s hope we see more characters like Julia making an appearance.