“Consolidation of the supply chain is a real worry for independent businesses,” believes Anne-Marie Bain of Aberdeenshire Larder, a game dealer, butcher and meat wholesaler. “The system is all set up to supply retail. Food service gets no priority. We need a mix to support all the different types of businesses in the food sector.”

Anne-Marie works with her brother, John-Andrew and mother, Charmaine, for the family-owned independent food service company in Ellon, Aberdeenshire. They are renowned for their wild venison and game along with beef, pork and lamb which they provide for customers from the highlands to the central belt.

“We supply all customers – from five-star restaurants to company canteens. We focus on customers who still have skill in the kitchen and that’s not just high-end restaurants. A lot of our nursing home customers cook from scratch every day. My father built the business up from the butchers shop in Tarves and we have kept a very loyal customer base. We like to provide a high level of service for people. We just changed our shifts so we have staff working until 10pm to ensure the needs of chefs who work in the evening are met. We are competing with big corporate food service companies who cannot compete with us on that level of service.”

International trade

International meat exports might seem quite far away from an Aberdeenshire meat wholesaler employing 42 people, but Anne-Marie is clear the whole industry is connected.

“The international trade has an impact on our business here in the north east,” said Anne Marie.

“We can see strong drives for exports which causes problems for supply. This summer we struggled to get pork for making sausages because of a spike in exports. This stifles local business stability. We can’t run a business delivering it one week and not the next. We have to be careful about the model post-Brexit. Do we want the focus to be on new markets or on ensuring enough product is available to supply domestic buyers?”

Food innovation

In order to keep ahead of the competition and attract customers, food service companies have to come up with new recipes and products.

“We are doing new burgers all the time. Food development is a big part of keeping your business moving forward. We have hickory, smoked pancetta and wild boar burgers and we are working on a wild Scottish partridge and pancetta burgers.

“One I am very excited about is our own haggis which will be ready for Burns Day. It’s not just the flavour of a new dish that needs developed but we also need to measure the nutritional value too for customers.”

Restaurants and hotels are looking to make a mark-up on what they buy plus consumers are looking for increased value when they go. This has, in part, driven sales of burgers and gourmet burgers.

Burgers are the most popular menu item for eating out in the evening while steaks are number four and this is something reflected in Anne-Marie’s orders. “We are selling more burgers than ever before. They are really popular in restaurants. I could count on one hand the fillet steak customers, but everyone has a burger on their menu,” said Anne-Marie.

On Scotch beef

Scotch beef commands a premium in the food sector with customers often having to pay more than beef from other countries. But is it worth the extra cash?

“There is a premium for Scottish beef. In food service, this is underpinned by the Scotch Beef Club. However, the waters are muddied when our bigger competitors offer Scottish-origin product at much cheaper prices, but it wouldn’t meet the Scotch Beef criteria; that’s very difficult to explain to a chef, because all they see is that it’s Scottish. Chefs need to understand the difference between Scottish and Scotch beef,” believes Anne-Marie.

“Eating quality is vital. Beef shouldn’t be too tough and customers are not calling for too much marbling. We are looking for a 3.5kg rib-eye and a 5-6kg striploin. The trend is for a tight muscle so chefs can cook a thick, short steak.”

Grain fed beef

Scotland still has a love affair with going out for a quality steak but chefs are on the lookout for something different to help attract a premium.

“We have chefs asking specifically for grain-fed beef. It is in fashion right now. Grain-fed beef cuts like butter and chefs get very few complaints about toughness. But it lacks flavour, so you need it well seasoned. Chefs are always looking for something new and want more information about meat. This allows them to sell a more premium dining experience.”

Meat wholesalers are being offered meat from different production systems around with world.

“We don’t take South American beef but they are really upping their game in the UK. They are drilling down into specific breed offerings when marketing their meat. That’s really attractive to chefs – the more information they can put on a menu to sell the dish, the better,” said Anne-Marie.

Lamb sales

Scotland produces more lamb than it consumes. “We don’t deal in huge volumes of lamb because generally, it’s too expensive for most restaurants to put on a menu, once they have added their cost and margin. Some food service customers will buy imported lamb from New Zealand whilst retail shoppers want to see Scotch,” said Anne-Marie

Quality Meat Scotland

“Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) should be focusing more on social media and engaging with younger consumers than they are right now. We need to influence the early adopters. I would like to see QMS on platforms like Instagram.”

Women in the meat trade

Despite the meat trade traditionally being a male dominated world, Anne-Marie has never felt her gender held her back.

“I cut my teeth working in the factory growing up. I learned the business skills and the meat trade first hand. I find people are judged on their merits not their gender.”

Key to success

It’s all about the right product at the right price.