Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) is in good shape to deliver strongly on behalf of levy-payers, despite the continued “loss” of more than £1m in levy income on Scottish stock which are slaughtered outwith Scotland, says the organisation’s chief executive, Uel Morton.
Announcing a proposed external spend for a 12-month period spanning 2015/16 of £5.2m, which is slightly down on the £5.6m allocated for 2014/15, Mr Morton said QMS remained determined to keep pressing for the return of the lost levy funds it believes belong back in Scotland.
He also said, however, that there were encouraging signs for QMS in terms of a slowing of the recent trend of declining levy income for the organisation. This was due in part to positive signals coming from the current redevelopment of the pig processing plant at Brechin and the creation of a new abattoir in Inverurie.
QMS is also being helped in its work by the sourcing of substantial grant income, which has totalled £1.25m in the year past, a figure which Mr Morton said had been a “tremendous boost” to the activities QMS was able to carry out on behalf of levy payers.