FDBusiness.com

Scotbeef, one of UK’s largest privately owned fresh meat companies, has been awarded a £4 million Food Processing, Marketing and Co-operation (FPMC) grant. The award will contribute to a £17 million investment to fund a new abattoir and meat-processing facility at Inverurie in Scotland.

The Food Processing, Marketing and Co-operation grant scheme is part of the Scottish Rural Development Programme (2014-20) – a joint programme of support involving Scottish Government and European Union funds.

Rural Economy Secretary Fergus Ewing says: “Scotland’s food and drink is internationally renowned and continues to be a standout sector within our economy. The industry is worth around £14 billion to our economy each year, accounting for a fifth of manufacturing jobs. There are around 18,850 food and drink businesses in Scotland, employing approximately 115,400 people.

“This award will allow Scotbeef to move to new state-of-the art premises on the outskirts of Inverurie – safeguarding jobs and allowing the company to continue to offer a vital service to Scotland’s livestock producers but particularly those in the North East. The £4 million announcement demonstrates our continued commitment to help food and drink companies, large and small, take their businesses to the next level while building on our reputation as a land of food and drink.”

Robbie Galloway, managing director of Scotbeef, says: “We are delighted that the Scottish Government has agreed to support us in the construction of our new abattoir at Thainstone Business Park in Inverurie. As a fourth generation family company, with quality Scottish meat products at its heart, we are extremely pleased that this exciting development will secure the future of meat processing in the North East of Scotland for many years to come, providing security for the farmer producers who supply us and for our skilled local workforce.”

To date the FPMC scheme has supported 88 Scottish food and drink businesses with awards totalling £37 million – leveraging over £128 million private investment. The scheme has helped create around 750 jobs with a further 4,500 safeguarded.

The largest ever FPMC grant was awarded to potato processing firm Albert Bartlett in February. Albert Bartlett received a £4 million grant to allow the business to diversify into the growing convenience and chilled potato market, creating 35 new jobs.