Supported by the Scotland Food & Drink Recovery Plan and with funding from the Scottish Government, the programme will welcome 15 primary producers including brewers, bakers and ice cream makers. The businesses will also have one-to-one mentoring throughout the programme and ultimately will have meetings with Sodexo buyers this summer.
Sodexo is one of the country’s leading foodservice providers and is expanding its collaboration with local food and drink businesses to source more Scottish products.
Stephanie Pritchard, head of UK supplier development at Scotland Food & Drink, said: “The past two years have been incredibly difficult for Scotland’s food and drink businesses, but the uptake for the Sodexo Supplier Development Programme demonstrates that companies continue to innovate and strive for growth.
“Foodservice and wholesale markets present a huge opportunity for Scottish producers to expand. Increasingly customers – both business and consumers – are looking for quality, locally-sourced products which Scotland has in abundance. This programme presents a real commercial opportunity for businesses as they recover from the twin hits of Covid and Brexit and highlights the spirit of collaboration that exists with the industry and with the Scottish Government.”
The 15 food and drink companies taking part in the programme include: 71 Brewing (Dundee), Aye Love Real Food (Ayrshire), Galloway Lodge (Galloway), Island Bakery Organics (Mull), Mackays (Arbroath), Peter Equi & Sons (Hamilton), Roehill Springs Distillery (Keith), Taste of Arran (Arran), The Start Up Drinks Lab (Port Glasgow), Tilly Confectionery (Larbert), Vertegrow (Aberdeenshire), Walker’s Shortbread (Aberlour), Aldomak (Glasgow), Bon Accord Soft Drinks (Edinburgh), Buchanan Distribution/Nudie Snacks (Kilmarnock).