News & Forthcoming Events

IIf your business is involved in food production or processing and/or provides meals and snacks to tourists and visitors to Scotland, then you will be aware of the changing demands being made on you by your customers.

Catering for vegetarians, vegans, people with food allergies, wheat intolerances or simply providing a healthier alternative to people who have raised cholesterol levels or diabetes concerns is no longer a matter only for specialist outlets.

Consumers want and expect their dietary needs to be met – even when on holiday, so if you cannot meet these demands now and in the future, then this business will pass you by. Given how competitive the market is nowadays this is trade you cannot afford to miss.

- However, how can you spot what the next trend is going to be?

- What will visitors to Scotland expect from the food served to them?

- How can you turn your menu into a way of increasing your turnover and getting  both repeat and increased future business?

 

It is to help you answer some of these questions that KIT-OUT the Park in collaboration with the Food Processing KTN, is running the “Futures for Food Tourism” workshop.

This session will bring together businesses from all parts of the food/tourism supply chain to explore what needs to be done to meet the changing consumer demands from both home based tourists and foreign visitors to Scotland’s most scenic areas. There will also be input from leading academics in food and nutrition and advice will be on hand from business development advisers. Jim Mullen of Larder Bites will be our keynote speaker to give his experiences of the benefits of developing effective local food networks.

This is a superb opportunity to come along, meet other key players in the sector, express your views on what needs to be done and develop an action plan that can have a major effect on the competitiveness of your business both now and in the years ahead.

 

How to Register

You can register online, email us or telephone 0141 331 8482/8458. Download a copy of the agenda and the event poster.

As higher commodity prices become "the new normal" rather than a temporary peak, we may see a greater impact on consumer behaviour and retailer and supplier strategies than has been apparent so far, according to a new report, entitled Food and Beverage 2012 – a taste of things to come, from Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu.

 

Cookroom Ltd  from Kinlochard is celebrating after winning a prestigious Great Taste Award.  Cookroom has been presented with a much-desired one star Gold Great Taste Award for its Madelines.

The Great Taste Awards, which is organised by the Guild of Fine Food and often referred to as the Oscars of the food industry, is this year celebrating its 15th anniversar.

Cookroom began trading in January 2008 providing a range of wheat and gluten free home baking products. A client base has been established supplying to coffee shops and tearooms, farmers markets and direct to individuals. For further details please see www.cookroom.co.uk. The business has now expanded to offer catering for events and functions where wheat and gluten free products are a speciality.

 

Morag Philips, Proprietor and cook at Cookroom Ltd, said: “We are thrilled with this award so quickly after setting up this new venture. Winning a Great Taste Award recognizes the skill, hard word and dedication that goes into making our wheat and gluten free range. The delight on customers faces when they see and taste our wide range of products has been hugely rewarding. Not only that they come back and buy more, not just for them but for all the family”. Morag added “Obviously you don’t need to be on a wheat and gluten free diet to enjoy our products!”

 

Pure Lochside, a client of Kit-Out the Park, enjoyed a high profile at last month’s Scottish Open Golf Championships. The company, which supplies a range of cosmetic products made from organic ingredients, was asked to by Loch Lomond Golf Club to create an exclusive massage oil for its Spa which could also be retailed to guests.

The resulting product, which contained a blend of therapeutic essential oils to ease aches and pains, revive and rejuvenate, was produced in 30ml bottles and presented to the players’ wives on the Open Ladies Day. They proved a huge success, and Pure Lochside is now looking forward to working on future projects with Loch Lomond Golf Club.

The full range of products will be demonstrated at the Kit-Out the Park Technology Showcase in October.

Further information can be found on www.purelochside.com

 

In Callander, this summer, it will be easy to find out what’s on and where the best deals in town are – simply switch on your mobile phone's  Bluetooth facility and regularly-updated information from the town's businesses and attractions will tell you what's happening and, using full colour maps, show you where.

It's a unique, innovative and easy to use system developed by the Mobile & Ubiquitous Computing (MUCom) Research Group at Glasgow Caledonian University. The system is called Mini-GIST (Miniaturised Geographical Information System for Tourism) and it turns each visitor's mobile phone into a fount of local knowledge.  MiniGIST was adapted for Callander Enterprise, a local group of enterprising businesses in the town. The pilot project was officially launched on 29th May in Callander by Fergus Wood, Provost of Stirling and Frank Park, Chairman of Callander Enterprise

Derek Gallaher, manager of  Glasgow Caledonian University's KIT-Out the Park Project, which is supporting the pilot scheme, said it was tremendously exciting development, "Mini-GIST gives local businesses in Callander not only a chance to advertise themselves for free, but its adaptability means they can update offers and events as they happen. For tourists, the maps and information just open up the community for them in a completely new, intuitive and exciting way."

Frank Park, Chairman of  Callander Enterprise said, "We're really excited. This system can instantly transmit tourist data to people's mobile phones via Bluetooth, from local access points throughout the town. The information will feature businesses and attractions that a tourist will find interesting, and can be filtered via special maps rather than a boring list of numbers. We can't wait to get the project active for this summer."