Working in a land often known for its inclement weather, Scotland’s fresh produce suppliers are a breath of fresh air. Cheerful, ambitious and proactive – Scotland’s vibrant seed potato businesses place a high priority on exports, while across all categories there is a strong focus on varietal development, branding, NPD and new markets. With a smaller multiple retail presence than England, Scottish suppliers are just as interested in the public sector, small retail, processing and convenience markets.
On production, Scottish growers have adapted to changing global markets, and adviser for NFU Scotland, Peter Loggie, explains how the country’s crop portfolio has changed over the last several years.
“Field vegetables and potatoes remain key Scottish crops. Soft fruit used to be mainly strawberries and raspberries, but now more companies are going into blueberries quite substantially, whereas raspberry investment is falling away,” he says. “Cherries are another new crop that growers are looking at – using a novel growing system of bushes under tunnels. There are also niche crops like aronia berries that some growers are diversifying into.”
Several of the recent debates in UK fresh produce have particular impact in Scotland – the introduction of the new National Living Wage, already a cause of concern for many, sparked fears in Scotland, as companies already have to meet wage targets set by the Agricultural Wages Board (AWB), while the rest of the UK does not.
Another politicised issue, that of GM produce, has received an even more polarised reaction. The Scottish government recently exercised its new right to opt out of any GM cultivation approved at EU level – a decision that Loggie says was met with “anger” by many growers. “We’re not evangelists for GM – there isn’t a market for it at the moment, but we don’t want to be blocked from it in the future,” he explains. “If you look 10 years into the future, Scotland as a major seed potato supplier to England is going to be blocked from one of its key markets if there is a new blight-resistant potato available, which English growers will be able to grow.”
The comparatively small size of Scotland’s fresh produce sector is in stark contrast to its wide-ranging engagement with issues affecting the trade, as well as its position as an international fresh produce supplier, and it’s clear that its suppliers have big plans for the future.
The global seed potato breeder:Caithness Potatoes
Tucked away down a lane in rural Perthshire, Caithness Potatoes is the perfect example of a small Scottish business with a disproportionately global reach
The seed potato breeder does two thirds of its business overseas, with customers as far as Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Egypt. It aims to expand further into North America, Germany and France, and where markets are too far away, it has licensed production in New Zealand, South Africa and Australia.
Seed is grown primarily on land owned by the five shareholders, including family-run firm RS Doig – headed up by Robert Doig senior, wife Zella and son Robert. With a twinkly look in her eye and 30 years of potato breeding behind her, Zella explains how varietal development has changed. “Yield development has peaked now so it’s more about storability and disease resistance. The Pallida nematode is the one people are trying to find a resistance to at the moment. It’s a particular problem in eastern English counties where there has been more intensive production in the past.”
Caithness has a raft of successful varieties already in the market, and more in the pipeline – early maincrop variety Sunrise is stocked in Waitrose, Divaa is listed by M&S, while other new varieties Bute and Jubilee offer good nematode resistance. Sales and logistics manager Stephen Hole explains: “There is a constant hunger for varieties that do different things. Our varieties are fairly robust so we’ve got a good reputation. Lots of the breeding and assessment is done in Scotland so the quality is high.”
The need for new potato varieties will only become more important in the future and companies like Caithness are well placed to cater for future trends. Until then, Zella points out the smaller joys of working in the industry: “There’s always that beautiful moment of anticipation when you lift a potato out of the ground and you don’t know what you’re going to get,” she smiles.
The one-man band:Skea Organics
Andrew Skea flicks through the photo gallery of bright blue and red flesh heritage potato varieties and explains his plans for the future. His business, Skea Organics, has a well-established niche in the organic seed potato market that belies the company’s modest £1 million turnover, but Skea sees opportunities in new markets and in the crisping sector.
Alongside the breeding, he also supplies washed organic carrots and potatoes into box scheme Abel & Cole in a contract worth 40 per cent of the business. “Abel & Cole are quite sophisticated as a box scheme – I think of them more as a retailer,” he says. “The quality and spec is the same as a retailer, and they see their competition as Ocado and Waitrose. Most box schemes still use dirty carrots and potatoes, usually from their own land.” Another Scottish business with its eyes firmly overseas, Skea says he would like to develop export sales, and reveals he has had a recent enquiry from the Middle East. “Most exports go to Germany and Scandinavia. We do send some to Turkey but nothing profitable outside of the EU.
“Crisps is where I’m seeing most interest. There isn’t a huge amount of potential in supermarkets, but there is scope to increase business in the processed sector. To see supermarkets market fresh coloured potatoes would require a U-turn as they’ve been reducing SKUS.”
Skea says that it is texture rather than taste that sets the coloured potatoes apart – vivid blue variety Violetta is similar in texture to Maris Peer or Charlotte, while Shetland Black is a purple variety with red ringed-flesh, which is similar to Maris Piper. For such a small business it is an ambitious vision of the future – and although his plan is to grow to a point where he can take on more staff and delegate, for now it is Andrew Skea driving it forward.
The public sector supplier:Stirfresh
Maradona, Richie McCaw, Zidane and Messi keep Andrew Stirling company in his office at Stirfresh’s Montrose headquarters. Or at least, their shirts do – testament to Stirling’s longstanding passion for collecting signed sporting memorabilia at auctions.
It’s not the company’s only connection with the sporting world either – Stirling is delighted to explain how former Dundee United FC star Paul Heggerty is now Stirfresh’s brand ambassador and premier salesman. His enthusiasm is infectious, but Stirling is keen to stress that while he does most of the talking, it’s his wife Anita who is the driving force behind the business. And driving forward it is – Stirfresh has a profitable contract with Aldi in Scotland to supply mixed veg and soup medleys, accounting for eight per cent of the business. “The best part about dealing with Aldi is if you need to speak to someone you can get through to them on the phone directly,” explains Stirling. “They are fantastic to deal with.” Stirfresh’s tie-up with Scottish brand and cartoon Maw Broon is another success story, and baby pre-pack and baking potatoes with the brand are currently stocked in Spar across Scotland. Supplying the public sector accounts for the remainder of the business – but far from sticking to the day job, Stirling stresses that NPD is an important and exciting part of the business. “Our company is about finding new avenues, without losing the basics of slicing and dicing fresh potatoes,” he says. “Turnover is about £3.5m, and we’d like to get to five. We currently produce about 10 tonnes a week roughly, on the washed side.”
With strong routes into Scottish retail, the public sector and convenience, and a finger on the pulse of product development, the ambition behind this small but proactive company suggests it is certainly one to watch for the future.
The vertically-integrated grower:Stewarts of Tayside
Swede and soft fruit might seem an unlikely combination, but as Stewarts of Tayside director Liam Stewart explains, seasonally, the two products are a match made in heaven. The family-run business, located on the banks of the river Tay from which it takes its name, grows around 2,000 acres, with swede produced across the UK, and soft fruit grown locally in Scotland. Its year-round swede business means it is one of the largest swede suppliers in the country, and the family is also one of Scotland’s largest independent berry growers.
“We would never become part of a grower group – our business model is that we’re in control,” says new chairman Will Stewart, who has recently taken over from founder and brother Jim and is now heading up an ambitious rebranding of the business. His co-director and son Liam adds: “In general, where it’s going is direct supply, so customers like what we can offer. In the soft-fruit sector, there will always be a need for grower groups to supply year round, but they like to have good direct suppliers for seasonal needs. We see direct supply as becoming more popular – the focus on regionality is drifting away – now it’s about price and quality.
“Turnover is £18 million at the moment, and in the next five years we are aiming to exceed £25m, and we see more immediate growth in the soft-fruit sector.” Growth in the swede business will come from varietal development and better pack-out efficiencies, Liam continues, with the aim of increasing tonnage without necessarily increasing acreage. Both Stewarts are crystal clear on the future direction of the business – Liam says they aren’t interested in a diverse portfolio, preferring instead to excel in the products they are known for. Proud of the company’s position as a leading Scottish grower, Will sums it up: “Our unique selling point is that we have total control over growing, packing, processing and hauling. We have the product, so what we’re trying to do now is grow the business through more customers.”
The multi-million pound business:Albert Bartlett
Albert Bartlett’s new £60 million frozen factory, in Airdrie, near Glasgow, caused waves in the industry when it was first announced last year, as much as for the size of the investment as for anything else.
Months later and head of marketing Michael Jarvis says the factory has been “delayed in the planning stages”, although he confirms it is still set to go ahead. Indeed, the company’s drive into frozen continues apace – its newly-purchased Westwick site in Norfolk is now up and running, and it has launched two frozen potato products into Sainsbury’s and The Co-operative – supported by television advertising. “Going into frozen, where there are a lot of big brands, you can’t do things half-heartedly,” says Jarvis. “The reason we’re going into frozen is diversification. Frozen is also a bit less seasonally-dependent than fresh – volumes are more flat all year round so there is better crop usage.”
Despite tough conditions in the wider market, Jarvis says Bartlett’s fresh potato sales, which still form the majority of the business, are buoyant, driven by branded potato Rooster and retailer own-label supply. The company’s existing Airdrie site is an impressive combination of boardrooms, packhouse and office space, along with the obligatory oil paintings of the company’s well-known directors. When it eventually arrives, the new frozen factory and its promised “hundreds of jobs” will no doubt be well-received by the local community and potato industry alike, as a new route to the processed potato market.
Elsewhere, subsidiary business Scotty Brand has 26 SKUs covering both fresh produce and protein, primarily listed north of the border and in Ocado. Jarvis says a recent Asda trial of Ayrshire potatoes may provide a platform for further expansion into England, and he also believes the brand’s berry lines have strong potential – Bartletts is little-known for its soft-fruit business – with capacity to grow and sell more. “There is lots to go for in Scotland, but the ambition is that it should be a UK-wide brand,” he adds.
