Finalists Announced in School’s Street Food Challenge

The winner of an innovative “Butchery and Beyond” schools street food competition is set to be announced on the Quality Meat Scotland stand at the Royal Highland Show next week.

Teams of youngsters from three Scottish schools have been recognised as finalists in the competition which saw S3 pupils challenged by award-winning Scottish butcher, S Collins & Son, to create a new street food dish.

This initiative, set up in a partnership between Quality Meat Scotland (QMS), the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) Scotland, and Scotch Butchers Club Member, S Collins & Son, introduced the pupils to cooking with Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb or Specially Selected Pork products.

In its second year, the competition further challenged pupils to work out costings for their product and create a marketing campaign with the aim of helping students and educators understand the variety of careers available across the food chain, the routes to access them and the skills required by employers.

The finalists of the competition are: Adam Brooks and Vincent Angelini of St Ninian’s High School, Kirkintilloch who created the dish ‘Sweet Lamb Sensation’; Emma Getty and Kelsey Gibson of Kirkintilloch High School, who cooked Scotch Lamb Filo Parcels; Tea Boyd, Ciaran Macintyre, Megan MacCrimmon and Elise Congalton from Our Lady’s R.C. High School who served their Spicy Pork Pinwheels.

Jennifer Robertson, Health & Education Coordinator, QMS, said: “Congratulations to each of the finalist teams, we are very impressed with the finished dishes and are excited to be part of this initiative.

“The quality and flavour of Scotch Beef PGI, Scotch Lamb PGI and Specially Selected Pork is second to none and it’s important for young people to gain an understanding of the care and attention to detail involved in the production of these quality ingredients.”

As a proud member of the Scotch Butchers Club run by QMS, S Collins and Son butcher is committed to sourcing top quality Scotch Beef PGI, Scotch Lamb PGI and Specially Selected Pork from approved suppliers who are part of the QMS Quality Assurance Scheme.

Stewart Collins, Senior Partner, S Collins & Son said: Stewart Collins, Senior Partner, S Collins & Son, said: “We are delighted to be involved in the Butchery and Beyond initiative and see the pupils showcase their skills with fantastic local produce.

‘’It is important to S Collins & Son that the next generation are aware of the variety of food and drink careers that are out there. I am also keen to also help youngsters understand the variety of high quality produce that is available on our door step,” said Mr Collins

“We are committed to supporting the local community and this initiative helps bring the school curriculum to life. I am delighted to be involved in this challenge again and look forward to the winner being announced,” he added.

Moira Stalker, Skills Manager, FDF Scotland, said: “We are delighted to be running this project again this year. Even more youngsters will learn about the variety of exciting career opportunities available in the food and drink industry – including science, product development, engineering, marketing, nutrition and design. With our partners we are inspiring the next generation of food and drink leaders.”

The winner of the Butchery and Beyond street food challenge will be announced by BBC Scotland presenter Brian Burnett on the QMS stand of The Royal Highland Show (21st-24th June 2018) where the finalists will be rewarded for their creativity and innovation with a performance from emerging local star Saskia Eng, who reached the knockout stages of ITV’s The Voice UK this year.