By Iain Clunie, Programme Director, Scotland Food & Drink Net Zero Commitment
Scotland’s food and drink sector has spent decades building a reputation for quality, provenance and authenticity. From whisky and seafood to beef, baked goods and berries, what makes Scottish food distinctive is often as much about where it comes from and the people behind it as the products themselves.
Supporting more than 120,000 jobs and contributing £19 billion to the Scottish economy, food and drink is central to the country’s economy and identity, and ranks as Scotland’s third-largest industry. But the conditions in which it operates are changing, with climate volatility, rising input and energy costs and growing pressure on supply chains all demanding urgent action.
For many, particularly the SMEs that make up the vast majority of Scottish food and drink businesses, navigating Net Zero may feel like another demand on already stretched resources. However, the transition to Net Zero is about making businesses more competitive, more resilient and ultimately more profitable, not simply about reducing emissions.
A food manufacturer will face very different decisions to a distillery or a farm, and the investment required will vary accordingly. There is no one-size-fits-all route to Net Zero. What matters is finding the changes that make sense for individual businesses, and recognising where reducing emissions can also reduce exposure to some of the wider risks they are already facing.
Scotland’s best-selling haggis producer, Simon Howie, is a great example of how investment in sustainability can strengthen the resilience of a business. Its £3.7 million investment in wind, solar and battery storage is expected to generate more than 120% of the business’s energy needs and reduce its carbon footprint by more than 500 tonnes annually.
Integrating this renewable energy system has brought a real sense of optimism to the business. It effectively shields operations from the volatile energy price spikes that have become all too common, giving Simon Howie long-term cost stability. An added benefit is the reassurance it gives to customers that they are partnering with a supplier deeply committed to the environment – a factor that is actively opening doors for further business growth. While Simon Howie’s strategy was prompted by the severe energy price hikes of 2022, it has proven to be a blessing in disguise, transforming a major macroeconomic challenge into a competitive advantage.
A multi-million-pound investment in renewable infrastructure, however, is beyond the reach of most SMEs operating in Scotland – and the sector is made up primarily of smaller businesses. For them, the opportunity can look very different but be equally impactful.
In the Outer Hebrides, North Uist Distillery’s use of heritage Bere barley sourced from local crofters demonstrates how a more sustainable approach can strengthen, rather than dilute, the provenance that makes a Scottish product distinctive. Bere is well suited to Scottish islands’ challenging conditions and has been grown there for centuries. Working with local crofters using traditional approaches, including seaweed fertilisation and winter grazing, also supports a more regenerative approach to the land, while bringing the grain back into a local whisky supply chain.
As the distillery works towards a carbon-neutral, grain-to-glass production cycle, with the barley grown, malted, distilled and matured on the island, the shorter supply chain can reduce emissions associated with transporting raw materials and the finished product, while also strengthening the resilience of the business by reducing reliance on non-domestic imports that can be exposed to disruption, instability and price increases.
That connection to place is increasingly important to consumers. Research from Scotland Food & Drink’s Knowledge Bank shows that 84% of Scots would like to be able to buy more food and drink produced in Scotland when grocery shopping. Consumers also associate Scottish provenance with factors including low food miles, sustainable production methods, packaging, animal welfare and supporting the local economy.
That creates an opportunity for businesses that can connect sustainability with the qualities consumers already value. Improved availability, more competitive pricing and clearer labelling are among the factors that could further increase consumers’ likelihood of buying Scottish produce.
These examples are encouraging, but they also demonstrate why there cannot be a one-size-fits-all approach to Net Zero.
For a business employing hundreds of people, an investment in energy efficiency or packaging can be part of a long-term capital programme. For a small producer, the most valuable first step might be something much simpler like understanding its energy use, reducing waste, improving resource efficiency or making a change to how it sources inputs.
The important thing is to move from ambition to practical action, and that is where support and collaboration become critical. With more than 96% of Scotland’s food and drink producers classed as SMEs, many businesses simply do not have the time, money or specialist expertise to navigate every aspect of the transition alone.
The Scotland Food & Drink Partnership’s Net Zero Commitment has a role to play in helping businesses navigate that change, particularly through the sharing of knowledge and practical experience. The upcoming Climate Transition Plan places an even greater spotlight on the opportunities and actions that the food and drink sector can take. It will set out priority actions for industry and government and identify where proven approaches can be scaled in ways that are commercially viable and operationally realistic.
The priority now is to make it easier for more businesses to act, with better access to data, finance and support, alongside the policy clarity and infrastructure needed to give businesses confidence to invest. That is how Net Zero can become part of protecting the resilience, competitiveness and distinctiveness of our food and drink sector, while supporting businesses to respond to the changing demands of their customers and markets.
