For years, food and drink has been one of Scotland’s key growth sectors, both domestically and internationally, with a broad range of activity from farming, fishing and aquaculture to processing of raw ingredients into added value products. The performance of products such as salmon and whisky on the international stage have ensured that food and drink remains Scotland’s top export sector.
In November, in partnership with SAOS, NFUS launched the Scottish Agri Export Hub, to develop new export opportunities and expand existing export markets for Scottish agricultural produce. The new initiative focuses on the potatoes, cereals, fruit and vegetables sectors, to drive more value down the supply chain for the benefit of primary producers. The Hub is funded from the Scotland Food & Drink Partnership’s Recovery Plan, which is supported by the Scottish Government.
Patrick Hughes of SAOS who leads on the new initiative told us: “The Hub is working in collaboration with export development agencies such as Scottish Development International and the Department of International Trade, to help the primary agri sector identify products capable of profitable and sustainable export, and to develop a longer-term export strategy. Ultimately, we hope to increase the number of primary producers with additional capability who can supply export markets.”
“In the first few months we’ve mainly been making introductions to key stakeholders and also to many of the agricultural businesses in the potato, cereal and horticulture landscape, to help determine the type of products that are currently being exported and to identify and explore further potential export opportunities.”
“And there certainly are opportunities – our produce is world-class and much of it is already well known around the world. If certain products are already in demand, there’s no reason why others wouldn’t be able to build on that. International markets can offer huge opportunities to primary producers, and we can learn a lot from the sectors that have already been there and now ‘wear the t-shirt’!”
“Export opportunities will remain the focus of the Hub, but we’ll also be working with industry partners to highlight and, wherever possible, find solutions to the barriers to trade that affect the sector, whether these are close to home or from continued trade disruption due to Brexit. Interest on this has already been piqued further afield with ‘Les Echos’, the French financial newspaper, getting in touch for an interview.”
Scottish businesses can access the most up to date market insights and introductions to appropriate prospective buyers through the Scotland Food & Drink In-market Specialist network. This network of specialists based in key geographic locations of economic importance increase the on the ground support by helping to build Scotland’s reputation on a global stage. The next steps are for the Hub to engage directly with the In-market Specialists to identify export opportunities and match these with suitable businesses in Scotland.
If you’re new to exporting, the Hub can help you get started with the right markets. If you already trade internationally, we can help expand your sales and discover new opportunities. Contact: patrick.hughes@saos.coop