SCOTLAND QMS goes all out to make Scotch Lamb synonymous with national day
Lamb The drive to make Scotch Lamb the choice for St. Andrews Day includes creation of the 2024 Lamb for St. Andrew’s Day dish, backing from the Scottish Government, new recipes and consumer marketing campaign.
Posted on Nov 29 ,00:30
QMS goes all out to make Scotch Lamb synonymous with national day
Quality Meat Scotland (QMS), alongside livestock auctioneers and Scotch Butchers Club members, is upweighting support behind the drive for Scotland to recognise, eat and celebrate lamb on and around St. Andrew’s Day; this year, on Saturday 30 November.
Just as steak pie is celebrated at Hogmanay and haggis is enjoyed on Burns Night, the #LambforStAndrewsDay initiative aims to make our tasty, nutritional and sustainable Scotch Lamb synonymous with St. Andrews Day.
Aiming to engage various consumers, influencers and decision makers, this year’s activities include:
- Parliamentary event - once again, in collaboration with Sodexo and Campbell Brothers, Scotch Lamb was served at the Holyrood canteen for parliamentarians and the wider Scottish Parliament to enjoy and learn about lamb’s significance to Scotland's economy. As the Champion of Lamb for St, Andrews Day, Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Land Reform and Islands, Mairi Gougeon joined the event on Wednesday 27 November, where QMS and the Institute of Auctioneers and Appraisers in Scotland (IAAS) hosted a stand, providing more information about the initiative and the contributions of the Scotch Lamb sector.
- St, Andrew's Day dish - An exciting collaboration with Masterchef: The Professionals 2008 winner and Archerfield's Head Chef, Derek Johnstone on the 2024 lamb for St Andrew’s Day dish, the 'Muckle Scotch Lamb Pie' - a flavoursome puff pastry pie filled with lightly spiced slow cooked Scotch Lamb. Video content capturing Derek creating the crowd-pleasing recipe will be shared on Make it Scotch social media platforms and through other promotional activity. A selection of Make it Scotch influencer ambassadors will also be tasked with re-creating Derek's dish and sharing it with their followings across Meta and TikTok channels.
- Supporting school engagement – complimentary to the IASS initiative established in 2020 to supply free lamb to as many Scottish schools as possible during St. Andrew’s week, new ‘Tasty Little Lamb Week’ educational materials have been shared with the teaching community. This includes three fresh lamb recipes for students to prepare, along with two lesson plans exploring the journey of Scotch Lamb from farm to fork, highlighting its nutritional benefits and role in a healthy diet. This has been supplemented by a social media campaign on our education channels throughout November to showcase the lamb trade, featuring farmers, auctioneers, and butchers sharing their experiences.
- Consumer marketing - There will be a Scotch Lamb St. Andrew’s Day promotion via shelf edge labels in Lidl stores across the country and Aldi will feature QMS’s Scotch Lamb kelftiko recipe in their upcoming special buy leaflet and on their social media channels. In the ten days leading up to St. Andrew’s Day, the Bauer Network (including Clyde 1, Forth 1, Greatest Hits Scotland, Central FM, and Kingdom FM) are promoting Lamb for St. Andrew’s Day. Reaching millions of consumers in Scotland, the radio ads and partnership activity highlights what makes Scotch Lamb special, why Scotland is ideal for rearing this world-renowned product, and tips on how to cook with it. On-air competitions hosted by radio presenter and Scotch fan Grant Thomson will give participants a chance to win cash and vouchers for the Scotch Butchers Club, adding excitement to the campaign.
- Sponsorship - QMS is proud to sponsor the Scotch Lamb at the National Sheep Association Dinner in Dumfries on 29 November, showcasing the rich flavours of this premium product to hundreds of industry stakeholder attendees.
Sarah Millar, Chief Executive of QMS, said: "From government and consumer engagement to retail and radio collaborations, as well as a fresh educational programme for schools, we’re going all out to make our exceptional Scotch Lamb UK GI the deserved centrepiece of our national day!
"We invite everyone to join in the celebration by enjoying Scotch Lamb at their dinner tables - whether a show stopping roast, a simple lamb traybake or a crowd-pleasing lamb curry - and supporting our local farmers".
Neil Wilson, Executive Director of the Institute of Auctioneers and Appraisers in Scotland (IAAS), the membership body for livestock auctioneers, said:
"This is the fourth year that we’ve called on farmers and the industry to donate to the Lamb Bank and we’re very grateful to all those who generously gave to it this year. It allowed us to deliver another 2.75 tons of free lamb into secondary schools to engage the next generation of consumers with the taste, health and production benefits of lamb in various different ways. We are seeing the positive impact, and we’d urge even more farmers to get behind the initiative next year to promote the future of lamb and of sheep farming in Scotland".
Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs Mairi Gougeon said: "I am delighted and proud to recognise, eat and celebrate Scotch Lamb as the official meal for St Andrew’s Day.
"I encourage everyone, to join me in celebrating our national day by giving our renowned Scotch Lamb a go and supporting our farmers and the wider agricultural community".
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