Launched officially at Scotland’s Speciality Food Show at the SEC in Glasgow earlier this week, the new Scottish Food & Drink Excellence Awards have formally appointed Edinburgh-based 56 Degree Insight as their Official Research & Insight Partner.
Awards Director Helen Lyons commented: “Scotland’s £14bn food and drinks industry has long enjoyed an enviable reputation worldwide for outstanding quality and The Scottish Retail Food & Drink Awards aims to recognise and reward the many fantastic businesses that have helped build and cement that reputation.
“Ultimately, our aim with the new Awards is simple: we intend to help get more of Scotland’s fantastic quality food and drink products onto more shelves in Scotland.”
Key to developing the Awards has been a partnership with 56 Degree Insight, an Edinburgh-based research and insight agency headed up by former Kantar Senior Directors Jim Eccleston (pictured right) and Duncan Stewart (pictured left).
As part of the official launch of the Awards on Monday, Eccleston presented the findings of the first wave of bespoke research carried out on behalf of the new Awards, principally around the critical drivers of the growing consumer interest in Scottish food and drink such as provenance, sustainability and ‘Scottishness’.
Scottish Retail Food & Drink Awards Director Antony Begley commented: “Our ethos in approaching these new Awards has always been built around unveiling and understanding the facts and insight that drive consumers in Scotland to make the buying decisions that they do. For us, this had to be in partnership with an agency that truly understands the Scottish market and the food and drink market in particular. We believe that in 56 Degree Insight we’ve secured the best research and insight partner available.”
56 Degree Insight Managing Partner Duncan Stewart said: “We are delighted to partner with the team on these exciting new Awards, and we have already undertaken some consumer research to identify some of the key factors in food and drink purchase among Scots consumers. For 56% of Scots, reducing food miles, and the provenance of the products are key drivers of the purchase decision, as is recyclable packaging (63%) and healthier ingredients (62%).”
The 56 Degree Insight team will work closely with the Awards team to unearth new insight over the coming months to help the food industry better understand the key trends and needs of Scottish consumers.
