LOCAL HEROES

As the Scottish Retail Food & Drink Awards, an annual awards programme dedicated to the getting more Scottish products into Scottish shops, prepares to announce its 2023 winners later this month, SLR examines the importance of local sourcing.

BY FINDLAY STEIN

the local economy. And this can really set you apart from your competitors and appeal to shoppers who also care about sustainability and supporting their community. It’s a win-win. e bene ts don’t end there though. You can also build stronger relationships with suppliers. In Dan’s words, local suppliers “tend to be very responsive, very proactive and very willing to work with us in ways that big producers can’t. We’ve had local suppliers happy to create bespoke products just for the store, for instance.”

WHAT IS LOCAL?

But what does ‘local’ mean to Scots – and what types of products are they looking for? A survey conducted on behalf of the Scottish Retail Food & Drink Awards (SRFDA) by its research partners 56 Degree Insight in November 2021 discovered that for 52% of Scots, ‘local’ means ‘Scottish’ – though for a sizeable minority it is more local than this: regional or even their town or city (39%).

The idea of local sourcing isn’t a new one, but many local retailers really got switched on to it during the pandemic when – as stocks got low – a number of big brands e ectively turned their backs on c-stores to keep their supermarket pals sweet.

As usual, our sector rose to the challenge, and forged new links with smaller, local producers to keep shelves stocked with essentials.

But going local isn’t something you should do out of necessity: sourcing your stock from within Scotland or even closer to home has a number of bene ts for you, your customers, your community and indeed everyone else.

Because the products aren’t travelling halfway round the world, local sourcing reduces carbon emissions and energy consumption, which can help slow down climate change.

What’s more, reduced travelling time also results in fresher products with a long shelf life. Local sourcing also supports your local economy and creates jobs in your area.

ere’s also a simpler reason, as Dan Brown, Manager of Pinkie Farm Convenience Store in Edinburgh, explains: “We’ve always tried to use local producers because our customers like local products.”

So, by o ering locally sourced products, you’re burnishing your image as a retailer with a demonstrable commitment to sustainability, supporting local businesses, and promoting e research was strictly non-political and focused on the appeal, purely from a product/branding perspective. ere is no doubt that agging up the ‘Scottishness’ of food and drink products attracts interest and presents a real opportunity for convenience stores who are better placed to source and stock smaller, locally sourced food and drink items than their supermarket rivals. e survey also discovered that moving beyond ‘Scottish’ branding and stocking products which are as local as possible could yield even greater returns: 22% of Scots describe local provenance as ‘very important’ and another 41% describe it as ‘quite important’ when it comes to decisions on what they might buy. is demonstrates a clear desire for locally produced food and drink. But what particular types of ‘local product’ have the greatest appeal? Four categories stand out: fresh meat, poultry and sh; fruit and vegetables; dairy products; and bakery goods. In each case two-thirds or more of Scots describe locally produced/reared/grown versions being readily available as important to them. is will probably strike a chord with retailers who stock local bakery or meat products and know that, furthermore, customers are o en willing to pay a premium for these. at said, there was clear support for locally produced food and drink across all categories. is means that if convenience stores took the lead in sourcing such products, it would provide them with clear ammunition in the ght against the mults.

So, for convenience stores to entice Scottish buyers, stocking products which clearly display their origins to the most local of levels will appeal. Illustrating this, when respondents were asked about their preferences for either ‘Scottish’ or ‘British’ branding, there was little doubt that a Scottish identity was important for the overwhelming majority: all things being equal (price, quality etc.), 65% would select a product labelled Scottish and displaying the saltire over one that carried British branding such as a Union Jack – only 10% would prefer this type of branding.

COST-OF-LIVING CRISIS

So, we can all agree that local sourcing is the greatest thing since sliced bread (from the bakery just up the road, obviously) and that, all things being equal, the majority of Scots prefer Scottish products. But all things aren’t equal, are they? Locally sourced products can be more expensive than their mass-produced inferior rivals and everyone’s counting their pennies just now.

A second 56 Degree Insight survey conducted at the height of the cost-of-living crisis last November unsurprisingly found that price has become a more important factor for more than three-quarters (78%) of Scots. What’s more, over half (56%) agreed that factors other than price are now less important when they are shopping. is has resulted in changes in how people shop – in particular by an increasing use of discounters, frozen food shops, and stores like B&M.

However, there seems to be no decline in the desire to buy local produce, shop locally and to do the right thing in relation to environment –so long as the price is a ordable.

Again, over half (55%) of the 1,000 Scots surveyed agreed that they are concerned about where the food they eat comes from and that, despite rising prices, products being produced locally remains important for a signi cant percentage of them, with 42% rating 7 or more out of 10 on a scale where 0 is ‘not at all important’ and 10 is ‘vitally important’.

In fact, one-third stated that compared to a year ago food and drink being produced locally has become more important to them (8% much more/4% slightly more) while its importance has not changed for most (58%).

It’s not surprising that the survey found that products being produced locally continue to be more important for certain demographic groups – especially those less a ected by the cost-ofliving crisis and those in the more a uent socioeconomic groups.

With shoppers keen to make every penny count, the survey also asked if it was important that a product’s quality is recognised through an award/badge shown on the packaging. Again, a signi cant percentage (38%) gave this a rating of 7 or more out of 10.

Srfda

is brings us nicely to the Scottish Retail Food and Drink Awards, which were launched in 2020 and will present its third batch of awards at the Radisson blu in Glasgow on 23 May.

e SRFDAs have local sourcing at their heart and one simple goal – to help get more fantastic Scottish food and drink products onto more retail shelves in Scotland.