Supporting Scottish food and drinks businesses

Projects from across Scotland are being awarded grants of up to £5,000 to help to promote regional food and drink products and open up new markets.

Food festivals, workshops and markets celebrating produce from shellfish to whisky are among the 17 local and collaborative projects to receive support from the latest round of the Scotland Food & Drink Partnership’s Regional Food Fund.

The Fund, managed by Scotland Food & Drink, supports regional growth by backing projects to promote and sell produce from their areas.

Rural Affairs Secretary Mairi Gougeon said:

“We have some of the best food and drink in the world – the industry is worth £15 billion to our economy, supports thousands of jobs and businesses and is a success story at home and internationally. The Regional Food Fund is providing much-needed support to local businesses, producers and community groups to showcase the best products that their regions have to offer.

“Through this fund we have seen more than £750,000 awarded from the available funding to successful projects across Scotland. This round of funding celebrates some incredible produce at some wonderful locations that mean people will benefit from it all across the country, whether taking part in cookery events on Arran, learning about wild food in Glasgow or improving their culinary skills at Fife’s Cambo Snowdrop Festival.

“I look forward to hearing how each of these exciting projects develops.”

Scotland Food & Drink Head of Regional Food Fiona Richmond said:

“It’s truly exciting to support 17 more collaborative food and drink projects through this latest round of the Regional Food Fund. The quality of the applications reflects the passion and commitment to enhancing local food and drink initiatives, which are vital to the continued growth of Scotland’s food, drink, and tourism sectors.

“We congratulate all this year’s recipients and are eager to watch these projects unfold in the coming months, knowing they will leave a lasting and positive impact on communities across the country.”

Background

Regional Food Fund | Scotland Food & Drink (foodanddrink.scot)

In 2018, the Connect Local Regional Food Fund was launched consisting of 4 funding rounds, which saw more than £350,000 awarded across 78 projects. In 2021, the Scotland Food & Drink Partnership’s Regional Food Fund was launched in place of the previous Connect Local Regional Food Fund. This will be the fifth round of the fund under Scotland Food & Drink which has seen more than £400,000 awarded across 87 projects to date.