A project to raise awareness of Scottish seafood in key Asian cities is being implemented to help companies gain new business.
The Scottish Seafood Collaborative Group, a partnership between Seafood Scotland, Scottish Development International (SDI) and the Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation (SSPO), first secured grant aid from the European Fisheries Fund in 2012.
It is now looking to continue its work and has commissioned an international strategy development review to ascertain industry interest.
Graham Young, head of Seafood Scotland, said: “There is widespread recognition that Scotland is too small to have a fragmented approach to awareness raising within the large Asian market place, and that a joined-up effort across all the seafood sectors is required in order to make progress.”
“Our first year has enabled us to make good progress in Asia, but much work remains to be done in order to grow awareness of Scotland as a supplier of high quality seafood, and to turn that into sales,” he added.
Activities to date include educational and networking sessions with restaurant groups, chefs and buyers, and the development of a toolkit to help Scottish businesses promote their products in the Asian marketplace, among others.
A number of key changes were suggested through the review to make the programme stronger, including an industry-led awareness raising committee, a greater level of commercial activity using local agencies to ensure high market penetration and assisting Scottish companies to build relationships in the target countries.
Last year, exports of Scottish salmon to China alone increase by over 100%, and export of Scottish salmon to Asia are also now at record levels following the third consecutive year of increases.
The Group says the high rate growth of the sushi and sashimi markets offers further huge potential.
