Food to Go is Here to Stay

The growing importance of food to go in convenience stores has been highlighted again with the success of the Scottish government-SGF food to go grant programme. 73 convenience stores from across Scotland – including stores from island and rural communities – have benefited from awards as part of the 2019 grant programme.  An additional £50,000 was made available this year by the Scottish government, bringing the total funding available to £300,000.  The 2019 programme featured additional criteria on food waste and packaging reduction.

Commenting on the success of the programme, Cabinet Secretary for the Rural Economy Fergus Ewing MSP said,

“The Food to Go fund has made a real difference to small retailers across Scotland, helping independent grocers to provide quality, locally-sourced and healthy food, as well as promoting the importance of reducing food waste. I am pleased that in the coming year, we will extend the fund to more independent retailers to support them to invest in equipment and activity, that will help them deliver more locally produced, healthy food and contribute to our climate change ambitions as well as widen their appeal to customers.”

SGF chief executive Dr Pete Cheema OBE said,

“This is a tremendous example of the effectiveness of working in partnership with the Scottish government. This funding has gone directly to retailers and enabled them to stay competitive, respond to changing customer demand and connect more effectively with local suppliers. By working with the government SGF has leveraged in over half a million pounds of investment in our sector.”

The 2018 programme was also extremely successful, with 69 stores benefitting from awards. The food to go market in the UK is now estimated to be worth more than £21 billion.