Inspirational Sportsman Is Face of New Butchers’ Campaign

One of Scotland’s most inspirational sportsmen, rugby ace Chris Paterson, is the face of a new Quality Meat Scotland campaign to raise the profile of red meat’s role in a healthy diet.

The campaign will see Chris, who is Scotland’s most capped player with 101 caps under his belt and the country’s top points scorer, appear in action on posters in more than 300 Scotch Butchers Club shops.

Entitled “Strength. Energy. Growth – Red Meat Has It All” the campaign aims to highlight the important role of red meat in a healthy diet and includes a booklet of simple, nutritious recipes featuring Scotch Lamb, Scotch Beef and Specially Selected Pork.

Fitness is something Chris takes very seriously and red meat has always played an important part in his diet, never more so than in the past year when he has been recovering from a serious injury sustained in action on the pitch for his country.

The past year has seen Chris making a remarkable recovery from the injury which saw one of his kidneys almost split in two.

“I was very much encouraged to eat lightly cooked red meat as part of my recovery and I think this, and the fact I have always lead a healthy lifestyle and was determined to get back to full fitness, has helped me get over the injury so well.

“I tend to do the majority of the cooking at home as I get home from training before my wife and while I don’t claim to be a superb cook I’m not too bad and generally cook pretty much from scratch. Eating properly doesn’t take much effort - you won’t find a ready meal at our table!” said Chris.

As part of his involvement in the project Chris spent an afternoon with Loch Lomond beef farmer, Duncan Maxwell, who with wife Vivien and son David, runs 40 pedigree black Galloways on the 5000 acre Blairvockie at Ben Lomond.

He was also taught some of the skills of the butchers’ trade by Aberfoyle-based butcher Jonathan Honeyman, including how to cut the perfect Scotch Beef steak. During a visit to The Aberfoyle Butcher Chris also learned about the wide range of different cuts of Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb and Specially Selected Pork.

“We are delighted with the early response from butchers throughout the country to the campaign which is being rolled out over the next few weeks,” said Jack Broussine, marketing executive with Quality Meat Scotland. 

“We are also very pleased to have Chris fronting the campaign for us as he is a fantastic ambassador for both his sport and for fitness and a healthy lifestyle in general. His enthusiasm to get involved and to get out and get to know the Scottish red meat industry better has given the campaign an excellent boost,” Mr Broussine added.

The new campaign builds on Quality Meat Scotland’s existing health and education programme, including the sponsorship of Champions in Schools, a Winning Scotland Foundation project involving sporting heroes inspiring youngsters in which Chris is also involved.

QMS also runs a Meat Vouchers Scheme giving every secondary school in Scotland the opportunity to apply for a voucher of up to £100 for the purchase of red meat. At a time of tightening school budgets this national initiative is helping to tackle a concerning trend of young people leaving school without ever having cooked with fresh quality produce such as red meat.

Caption: ChrisPatersonAberfoyle: Aberfoyle-based butcher, Jonathan Honeyman, gave Chris an insight into the craft of the butcher.

ChrisPatersonBenlomond: Chris spent an afternoon learning more about the production of Scotch Beef from Ben Lomond farmer, Duncan Maxwell.

Notes to editors:

Quality Meat Scotland is the organisation behind the promotion and development of the Scottish red meat industry. QMS employs a full-time, qualified dietitian and supports a range of initiatives to communicate the benefits of eating red meat as part of a healthy, balanced diet.