Quality Meat Scotland Celebrates Success of Community Outreach Initiatives Across Scotland

Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) has been actively championing the benefits of high-quality red meat through a variety of educational initiatives which has reached close to 3000 pupils, students and community members across Scotland.

Since August 2024, QMS’s Community Engagement Team has delivered 18 impactful events, promoting healthy eating habits, showcasing the nutritional value of Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb, and Specially Selected Pork, and engaging with young people and communities to highlight the importance of sustainable food production. These activities have included classroom sessions, food and farming days, rugby development sessions, cookery demonstrations, and ambassador engagements, all designed to inspire and inform participants about the role of red meat in a healthy, balanced diet.

Highlights include the Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC) 'Be a Farmer' event, which introduced attendees to agricultural careers and MooFest at the National Museum of Rural Life, which offered hands-on learning experiences. The Royal Highland Education Trust (RHET) Food & Farming Day’s showcased the importance of food production and sustainability, while classroom sessions at Ardrossan Academy and the Lamb for St. Andrew's event at St. Joseph’s College in Dumfries provided more focused educational opportunities.

The team has also been busy inducting and training the new Scotch Ambassadors, a representative complement of 30 passionate, skilled and experienced individuals across Scotland to support us in promoting the benefits of our brands. Inital ambassador-led educational events including classroom sessions and cookery demonstrations have taken place and we look forward to rolling these out across key regions in Scotland in the new year.

One of QMS’s standout programmes, the Tasty Little Weeks initiative, has been highly successful in promoting red meat and encouraging healthy eating. Tasty Little Pork Week in October and Tasty Little Lamb Week in November saw strong engagement, with schools and communities enthusiastically working alongside local Scotch Butcher Club members.

The upcoming Tasty Little Beef Week (w/c 10 February 2025) will build on this success, rolling out new learning materials to schools, including fresh Scotch Beef recipes and lesson plans for teachers.

Supporting the spotlights on the individual red meat proteins, QMS’s school Meat Voucher Scheme has once again been made available to schools, enabling Home Economics departments to claim up to £180 to purchase Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb, or Specially Selected Pork for educational activities, further enhancing hands-on learning opportunities.

Another exciting initiative has been QMS’s partnership with Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh Rugby. Over the past few months, QMS has hosted three rugby development days, including events at Murrayfield Stadium and Dumfries House in Ayrshire, with more coming in 2025. These events have focused on educating young athletes about nutrition, particularly the benefits of Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb, and Specially Selected Pork in supporting health and performance .

In addition to workshops on nutrition, strength, and conditioning, players from Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh Rugby – many of whom have farming backgrounds – have shared their personal experiences to educate participants about the quality of Scottish red meat.

The partnership will also see the launch of the ‘Eat to Compete’ resource, distributed to rugby clubs across Scotland, which will feature nutritious recipes, dietary tips for athletes and families, and information on career opportunities in the agricultural sector.

Hear more about the project on the latest QMS podcast episode.

Tracy Martin, QMS Health and Education Coordinator, said:
“Our work with schools, communities and ambassadors is helping to build a healthier, more informed Scotland as well as supporting QMS’s wider reputation work to promote the benefits of Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb and Specially Selected Pork.

“Further to our ongoing community engagement activity, we have been busy laying foundations to enhance our reputation activity going forward including selecting Scotch Ambassadors which are well represented across Scotland to deliver our programme in their local areas, as well as kicking off a landmark partnership with the two Scottish professional rugby clubs for young players.

“We are looking forward to maximising the reach and positive impact of our outreach activity highlighting the value of red meat in 2025 and beyond.”

For more information about QMS’s community outreach initiatives and upcoming events, follow us on social media or visit qmscotland.co.uk.