East Lothian Food and Drink Newsletter

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BID UPDATES

SCOTLAND FOOD AND DRINK FUNDING

Industry body, Scotland Food & Drink, have created a new £250k fund to support the ongoing development of Scotland's regional food groups. 14 groups across Scotland will be supported by the funding, including East Lothian Food and Drink.

As well as allowing us to improve the services that we offer our members, the funding will allow us to promote East Lothian as a food tourism destination. East Lothian has such a wonderful food and drink offering and the funding will allow us to share this message with a wider audience and inspire people to discover East Lothian.

To read the full announcement, click here.

FEEDBACK FOR LOCAL REPRESENTATIVES

East Lothian Food and Drink works hard to ensure that its members views are represented, and that issues or concerns that members have are raised with relevant local representatives, such as MPs, MSPs and local councillors.

We have created a really quick Survey Monkey form that we will include in future newsletters. This form will allow members to pass on feedback quickly and anonymously to the BID team. This will enable us to better understand the issues that you are experiencing.

In particular, we would be interested in receiving feedback in the following areas so that we can identify and raise any concerns or issues with local representatives:

1) What challenges do you think your business will face over the next 12 months?
2) Is there any support that you would like to see given to businesses in the months to come?
3) What experience has your business had when engaging with large retailers and supermarkets? Has your experience been positive or do you think there are opportunities for supermarkets to engage more with small and local producers?

You can access the Survey Monkey form here.

VIBES 2020

The VIBES – Scottish Environment Business Awards- recognise businesses in Scotland which are taking the lead in the transition to a net zero emissions economy or are successfully tackling other environmental challenges.

The competition demonstrates that best environmental practice is also good for business, the economy and competitiveness, and that it benefits the area in which we work, live and relax. VIBES rewards those who have addressed sustainable development issues in the work place and inspire others to follow their example.

The submissions for VIBES must be submitted via email before 5pm on Friday 30^th October 2020. You can find out more here.

PRODUCT GURU PLATFORM

Product Guru is a product discovery platform that allows brands to showcase their products to retail buyers. The platform allows you to showcase your products to relevant buyers who are actively looking for products in your categories. It is free for producers to register on the platform. You can find out more about Product Guru here.

Product Guru are also launching an online experience, The Pantry Live, which will be held on the 5th and 6th of October.

Members of East Lothian Food and Drink can access a discounted 'supplier rate' for the Product Guru event using this link https://attendify.co/the-pantry-live-powered-by-product-guru-wFkYaZM?code=OTlfUEdWSVA=&ccode=22bba6d77cff6e33342c97ba8efc6e95099a1d3a

If you are interested in attending, the organisers have recommended that you sign up by the 30th of September so that you are in with a chance to secure a pitch at their retail pitch sessions.

Information from the organisers

We launched The Pantry Live to help create a space for talented and deserving food and drink producers to get themselves out there, to continue to make connections and grow their business.

Your brand has a genuine opportunity to get noticed by retail buyers during our unique two-day virtual event.

We already have an impressive line-up of retail buyers confirmed for the show who've cleared their diaries to review products over 5th & 6th October 2020 including John Lewis, Waitrose, Tesco, Lidl, Co-op, Scotmid, Holland & Barrett, WH Smith, Oxfam, Scotrail and many more independent retailers.

Some of these buyers will even carry out some dedicated "Meet Your Match" buying sessions where brands will be matched with a panel of buyers and given the opportunity to do a short pitch. The categories confirmed are: Fresh and dairy, Snacking, Fairtrade food, Gift food, Confectionery, Beers, wines and spirits, Food-to-go, Frozen food, Taste of Scotland, Soft drinks & well-being.

We are also backed up by incredible partners who will host virtual sessions to help grow your brand including GS1, Fairtrade Foundation, The Vegan Society, British Soft Drink association, Food & drink Devon, British Charcuterie Live and Proudly Norfolk.

For more information, please contact Chris Costello: chris@productguru.co.uk

We are pleased to be able to provide BID members with information about offers, deals and opportunities but would like to highlight that we are not recommending any of the third party service providers.

CLOSED FACEBOOK PAGE FOR BID MEMBERS

We have a closed Facebook page for BID members! We hope this group will be a good way for members to collaborate with each other but also a new way we can share information with you all, quickly and easily.

We cannot send invites for your businesses pages to join, but you can request to join the page by searching 'East Lothian Food and Drink Members' on Facebook.

Look forward to seeing you all on the page!

BUSINESS SUPPORT AND GUIDANCE

FOOD STANDARDS SCOTLAND: COVID19 GUIDANCE FOR FOOD OPERATORS AND THEIR EMPLOYEES

Food Standards Scotland have COVID19 guidance for food operators and their employees. You can find the guidance here.

EAST LOTHIAN COUNCIL'S GUIDANCE FOR REOPENING

East Lothian Council have a section of their website with guidance and information for businesses that are re-opening, including donwloadable 'Stay Safe, Support Local, Love East Lothian' posters.

Click here to visit the page.

GENERAL GUIDANCE

1) Guidance for workers and employers on returning to work safely can be found on the Scottish Government website. Sector guidance is also available on the Scottish Government Website.

2) Food Standards Scotland have information and Q&A about Coronavirus and food as well as covid-19 guidance for food business operators and their employees.

3) You can find out information about the support available from Companies House for businesses here.

4) You can download a copy of Scotland's route map through and out of the COVID19 crisis here.

FINANCIAL SUPPORT

Please note that local businesses DO NOT need to hire any agents or third parties to claim the government COVID-19 grants. Economic Development and the Business Rates teams at East Lothian Council can assist you. Contact economicdevelopment@eastlothian.gov.uk if you require any assistance.

findbusinesssupport.gov.scot is an up to date source of information for businesses in relation to Coronavirus.

SUPPORT FOR EMPLOYERS

Skills Development Scotland have created a portal to advertise immediate job vacancies. You can find out more here.

Advice on redundancy is available here or by calling 0800 917 8000.

The Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal have created a job vacancy site. For more information, click here.

ACAS have published advice for employers and employees on Coronavirus

HR Dept have information on Coronavirus for employers on their website. This includes a useful FAQ and a news section.

MARKETING OPPORTUNITIES

SUPPORT LOCAL DIRECTORY

Scotland Food and Drink have launched a Support Local directory.

The Support Local directory allows the public to search by region and by product type and purchase directly from a business via website or telephone. The directory will be supported with a ‘Support Local’ communications campaign led by Scotland Food & Drink and the wider Partnership through various consumer-facing channels.

All listings are free for businesses. You can find out more here.

SEAFOOD SCOTLAND- DIRECTORY REGISTRATION

Seafood companies can now register for three different consumer directories using one form on Seafood Scotland's website. Businesses can get a free listing on:

1) Scotland Food & Drink's Support Local site.
2) Fish is the Dish.
3) Fish on Friday.

To find out more, click here.