Lamb for St Andrew’s day is back - but with a twist

Scotch Lamb PGI is set to take centre stage this St Andrew’s day with the red meat industry coming together to promote the consumption of lamb during Scotland’s national day.

Quality Meat Scotland (QMS), alongside the National Farmers Union Scotland (NFUS), the Institute of Auctioneers and Appraisers Scotland (IAAS), and the National Sheep Association Scotland (NSAS), is supporting United Auctions’ campaign to put Scotch Lamb PGI on the menu by encouraging consumers to Make It Scotch Lamb this St Andrew’s Day - but with a twist.

“We are delighted to be supporting United Auctions once again with this fantastic campaign,” says Lesley Cameron, Director of Marketing and Communications at QMS.

“Due to Covid-19 restrictions, we are unable to support any public events so this year we are  encouraging families to visit their local butcher or Scotch Lamb stockist, purchase Scotch Lamb and get creative by trying a variety of dishes with different cuts of lamb at home.”

The campaign is also seeking local organisations, schools, and businesses to include special lamb dishes on their menus – from lamb korma to a traditional Sunday roast.

“Rated amongst the best in the world, Scotch Lamb is currently at its peak of seasonality,” highlights George Purves from United Auctions, who originally set up the campaign alongside Willie Mitchell during their time on the Scottish Enterprise Rural Leadership Programme.

“We have been overwhelmed with the support for campaign over the last few years and this year we would like to see households, schools and businesses throughout Scotland get involved to help make Scotch Lamb PGI synonymous with St Andrew’s Day, just like haggis for Burns Night and turkey for Christmas.”

Lamb has seen a one-fifth increase in the value of sales (20.5%) from the middle of August throughout September, with lamb chops and steaks the main source of growth.

Ms Cameron adds: “We have turned the winter efforts of our Make It Scotch Lamb campaign towards raising the profile of our industry stalwarts who work tirelessly to bring unbeatable high-quality Scotch Lamb to our shopping baskets.”

From field to fork, representatives from across the whole supply chain have come together to promote why they love Scotch Lamb PGI, including renowned chef Tony Singh MBE who has created a Scotch Lamb curry infused with Tomatin Cask Strength Malt whisky. The dish, which will be revealed in the lead up to St Andrew’s Day on the Scotch Kitchen social channels, is a delicious combination of two fine Scottish ingredients with an Indian-inspired twist.

Followers of the Scotch Kitchen Facebook page will be invited to enter a competition – running 9-13 November – to win the chance to take part in a virtual cook-a-long of the dish on Monday 23 November with Tony, George Purves from United Auctions, and Scottish food influencers Foodie Quine, The Wee Food Blogger and Perthshire Foodie.

As well as the cook-a-long, QMS will launch a campaign on 8 November to encourage consumers to show their support for the making Scotch Lamb a national dish for St Andrew’s, with a chance to win a Scotch Lamb Hamper. The red meat industry body has also established a media partnership with the Daily Record, which will generate over 500,000 opportunities to see Lamb for St Andrew’s day online and in print. The partnership will feature recipe inspiration and top tips from chef’s ‘The Kilted Chef’ Craig Wilson and Justin Maule as well as farmer, butcher and owner of Damn Delicious, Michael Shannon.

Ms Cameron concludes: “It’s been fantastic to see so many industry representatives take a leading role in helping market and promote Scotch Lamb PGI. There’s still time to be involved with Lamb for St Andrew’s Day and the wider Make It campaign by sharing content on social media becoming a ‘Make it’ ambassador.”

Click here to access the Lamb for St Andrew’s Day industry pack which provides some key messages, graphics and videos about Scotch Lamb PGI to share from your social channels, as well as how you can join the campaign to make Scotch Lamb PGI our national dish for the day,

Follow QMS on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram or visit www.qmscotland.co.uk.