Wholesalers welcome omicron support from Scottish government

Colin Smith, chief executive of The Scottish Wholesale Association (SWA), said: “Throughout the pandemic we have been in constant dialogue with the Scottish Government to ensure that they are aware of the many challenges facing the food supply chain.

“We thank ministers and officials for working with us to recognise this. We’re delighted that the Scottish Government have acted so swiftly to support wholesale.

“We are now working with the Scottish Government on the design of the fund which we expect will run in January once businesses have a better understanding of the impact.

“There will also be support for businesses to repurpose and redistribute unsold stock to community organisations.”

The SWA says that in the early part of the pandemic wholesalers lost up to 95% of their foodservice income and that even recently some businesses were trading at 60% of 2019 levels.

Smith added: “We all appreciate that this support alone won’t be enough to provide financial aid to all wholesalers who need it or cover the huge losses in sales but it will help cover some costs and address some potential food waste.”