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Farmers' co-ops 'vital to rural Scotland'
01/11/2007
The importance of farmers' co-operatives to the future success of rural Scotland was highlighted by Richard Lochhead today.
In an address to the Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society (SAOS) annual conference dinner, the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment stressed the importance of working together in realising the Government's vision for rural Scotland.
Mr Lochhead said:
"Meeting the demands of consumers to provide quality assured products at competitive prices remains a challenge to everyone involved in the farming industry. Working together through co-operatives can help individual farmers to provide a steady supply of top quality produce to customers.
"I commend the SAOS for promoting and assisting the continued growth of co-operation within the farming industry. With turnover of £1.4 billion last year, the activity of farmers co-operatives in membership of SAOS is very significant indeed.
"The Scottish Government have provided SAOS with financial assistance to grow the sector and this year, additional Scottish Government funding of £50,000 has enabled SAOS to work with Scotland Food and Drink to promote collaborative supply chains of producers, processors and retailers. By working together to develop markets and share information this can lead to contracts resulting in long-term benefits for everyone involved.
"We recognise the role of Scottish Government in encouraging a more collaborative approach to the food supply chain, which is why we have allocated some £16 million to promote the development of co-operation in the delivery of new products, processes and technologies through the next Scottish Rural Development programme.
"One of our key priorities is to develop a national food policy for Scotland and work is already underway on this cross-cutting issue. However it is also vital that the industry to play their part and we value the contribution of organisations such as SAOS in working towards developing a sustainable food chain.
"I also welcome the provisional report by Competition Commission into the UK grocery market and look forward to considering the full report in due course.
"The Scottish Government is fully committed to maintaining a profitable food supply chain with sound trading relationships. Key producers like co-operatives play a vital and increasingly important role in this process."
Mr Lochhead will be speaking at a dinner following the SAOS annual conference held at the Carnoustie Golf Hotel, Tayside on Thursday November 1.