Newly-formed Highland Food & Drink Club leads the way with online panel discussions
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THE new Highland Food & Drink Club has launched virtual panel discussions with industry leaders in a bid to promote and celebrate the region's top produce during the Covid-19 lockdown.
The first of many virtual discussions took place last week with a focus on the recovery process from a food service perspective.
The panel session, led by the club's John Murray, was ‘virtually’ attended by more than 20 businesses throughout the Highlands. The session discussed many issues the food service industry is currently facing, which included what it believes is the need for "clearer direction from government on operating their businesses with social distancing in place". It also looked at the financial impact social distancing restrictions will have on whether a business will be viable when it reopens.
The panel of industry leaders were Andy Waugh of Mac & Wild (Falls of Shin and London), Norman Macdonald of Café 1 Inverness, and Kenneth Loads of Cru Holdings (Bar One-Prime-Scotch & Rye and more recently CRU Kitchen).
The club said that it was clear from the session that, although the industry is facing a very uncertain time with too many challenges to mention, businesses had to remain positive and be ready to adapt to ensure their survival. Andy Waugh from Falls of Shin stated that he was blown away with the speed of innovation and the level of collaboration taking place within the industry. He said we have to embrace change and look for new opportunities within it.
John Murray, of the Highland Food and Drink Club, highlighted that: “It’s in times like these that we have to show courage and confidence that we will get through – we have to lead the way and come together to remain positive.
"Recently I have seen many leaders pivoting and showcasing true Highland spirit and completely changing their service offering to not only survive but to support the local consumer”.
“Our session panellists showcase how agile you can be if you are open to change – they have been very innovative throughout lockdown with their individual businesses providing home delivered meal’s, cocktail delivery and preparing meals from recipe boxes which all in turn keep their own spirits high as they feel like they are making a difference”.
The next (virtual) panel session will take place on Thursday, June 11 at 2pm. This session is for the producers, and the club will be looking at new markets, shopping trends and recovery planning. Mr Murray is inviting all Highland producers to attend.
Panel speakers for the producer event will include:
- Scottish Local Retailer Magazine – Antony Begley is the Editor of the Scottish Local Retailer Magazine and was going to be launching a new Food & Drink Awards this year.
- The Wholesale Company – Tom Fender has a vast amount and varied experience in the sector and is currently a development director with TWC. He previously owned HIM a shopper insights company, before selling it and has developed Bolt Training, an online training tool .
- Scottish Grocers Federation – Jamie Buchanan is currently Membership Consultant with the Scottish Grocers Federation. Prior to that he was the company-owned store Retail Director at CJ Lang – the Spar Wholesaler for Scotland – running over 100 convenience stores.
To join the online panel discussion just head to the Highland Food and Drink Club website and click the online events page and you can register. You will need Zoom to be able to connect to the discussion.
The Highland Food and Drink club is a network that was founded in March by John Murray, an entrepreneur based in Golspie. The club intends to encourage working together to promote and celebrate the diverse, high-quality food and drink within the Highlands and Moray. The Highland Food and Drink Club is supported through the Connect Local Initiative.
