Scottish food and drink producers have reportedly added £77m to their sales pipelines following the country's largest global food and drink trade event this week.
After a four-year break as a result the pandemic, Showcasing Scotland returned to the Edinburgh International Conference Centre on Wednesday, March 6 with over 100 of the ‘world’s most influential’ buyers in attendance.
Delegates were welcomed to the event by First Minister Humza Yousaf who said: “Our food and drink sector is a massive success story.
"It adds around £15 billion each year to our economy, with more than 17,000 businesses employing almost 130,000 people.
“I want to see this sector growing in the years to come, and events like Showcasing Scotland are absolutely vital in helping to spread Scotland’s finest produce across the globe.
“I look forward to continuing our engagement with the Scottish food and drink sector and hope all those who travelled from far and wide enjoyed their time in Edinburgh.”
A series of 1,822 ‘speed-dating-style’ interviews across two days brought together the UK and buyers from 22 countries including China, United Arab Emirates, USA, South Korea, France, and Japan.
READ MORE: Scottish producers meet with 'world’s most influential buyers' at showcase event
92% of the Scottish producers attending Showcasing Scotland reported that doors had been opened to new markets as a result of the event.
The suppliers also identified the biggest export opportunities in Asia, North America, Europe, and the rest of the UK.
Of those buyers, 37.5% said that they were ‘certain’ to spend more on Scottish products as a result of the event.
62.5% said they were ‘very likely’ to spend more on Scottish products.
Showcasing Scotland is organised by Scotland Food & Drink on behalf of the Scotland Food & Drink Partnership with support from the Scottish Government.
The Scottish producers attending were all selected for their 'scalability' and were supported in the run-up to the event to prepare for serving overseas markets through Scotland Food & Drink’s Supplier Support Programme, powered by The Academy.
Iain Baxter, chief executive at Scotland Food & Drink, said: “Adding £77m to the pipeline of Scottish food and drink producers is an incredible result by any measure.
"We have a global reputation for the quality and variety of our food and drink, demonstrated by the buyers’ desire to buy more from us.
“We welcomed so many inspirational people from across the world, fostering new commercial links, and friendships that should pay dividends for some of Scotland’s best and most innovative producers.”
READ MORE: 'Shocking': Ferry fiasco puts Scotland's world famous Islay whisky festival at risk
Morning all ☀️
— Sarah Campbell (@sz_campbell) March 6, 2024
I’m through in Edinburgh today with @heraldscotland for the Showcasing Scotland event where more than 150 food and drink producers from across the country have gathered
🧵 pic.twitter.com/yf5h6kbu4u
Scotland Food & Drink worked closely with members of the Scotland Food & Drink Partnership to develop and deliver the event including Scottish Enterprise, which attracted overseas buyers.
Reuben Aitken, managing director of International Operations at Scottish Enterprise, said: “The buzz and excitement generated during the event was fantastic to see and hear, with over 1,800 meetings taking place.
"Our food and drink businesses successfully promoted the outstanding quality and provenance of Scottish produce, and we’ll now focus on helping them secure sales and grow their international revenue.”
For more information on Scotland Food & Drink click here.
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