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HEINZ has launched the Deliciously Gluten Free range of pasta and pasta sauces.

Free-from from Heinz

8 April 2013

Unilever is trialling paper packaging for its Pot Noodle Chicken & Mushroom offering.

Pot Noodle on sustainability mission

All bar none

THE institution of the Burns Supper, now an annual celebration of the works of Scotland’s – and one of the world’s – great poets, Robert Burns, began in the very early 19th century. In 1801 some chums who were great admirers of the recently departed Rabbie, and who were also pretty fond of a dram, met on the fifth anniversary of the great writer’s death to wine, dine, toast his memory and recite some of his works. The following year the celebration moved to the date of the bard’s birthday 25 January and the rest as they say is history. The Burns Supper habit spread across Scotland. Within a few years a Burns Supper was being held in Oxford University. Today they are held all over the world. These days formal suppers can be quite posh with a multi-course dinner, a piper, a toast to the immortal memory of our great literary hero, a cheeky toast to the lassies, an even cheekier reply from the lassies, an address to the haggis and a recitation of Burns’ great narrative poem Tam o’Shanter. Other celebrations in homes and elsewhere are often much simpler. But virtually all will include two items that retailers can highlight in Burns season each year ... haggis and whisky. It’s sad that, because of marketing restrictions on alcohol products in Scottish off-trade outlets, it’s effectively impossible to cross-promote the two Burns Supper essentials or even to place them together in a display. But that’s all the more reason to promote them individually. Try highlighting haggis in your meat chiller, carry a few different sizes to suit the variety of sizes of households, use point-of-sale material to remind shoppers of Burns Night and the part that haggis plays in the celebrations. And you could make January a special malts month or simply arrange to focus on whisky generally in your drinks area. If you have a whisky deal that’s giving you a good margin highlight it within your drinks section. And creating a Burns theme in store, with tartan and maybe even pictures of the man himself, will help get the message across.

Power of the Bard

Shorter pack saves paper

Highland giant launches snack meals range

31 July 2014

FOCHABERS-based family-run food manufacturer Baxters has branched out with two new ranges of instant hot meals using some distinctly non-Scottish recipes. Baxters Meal Pots...

Ask the expert – RVM Systems

1 November 2022

RVM Systems Managing Director Claudia Marshall on DRS preparations and the benefits of reverse vending machines for retailers.

Celebrating sustainable success

7 October 2022

Drinks brands and hospitality businesses were recognised for their sustainability-focused activities at the Footprint Drinks Sustainability Awards last month.

Taking stock of trends

1 December 2020

Organic stocks and rice cake brand Kallo has expanded its range of organic plant-based stock cubes with two new flavours, Umami and Sriracha.

Consider a solar solution

12 September 2016

MUCH has been written in recent years about the great returns on investment retailers can make by replacing their old chillers with new energy-efficient...

Food and drink year in the making

26 June 2015

WE are now at the halfway point in Scotland’s Year of Food and Drink which set out to promote the country’s natural larder. Scotland Food...

Building for the future

26 June 2015

HAVING jumped a place from number eight to seventh in our Top 50 Scottish take-home brands last year, Stirlingshire-based Graham’s The Family Dairy has...

Sustainable future for seashells

1 March 2022

Chocolate seashell brand Guylian has undergone a relaunch, comprising a sustainability-focused packaging overhaul and a new recipe.

Smart shops for savings

27 March 2023

Shopfitting solution experts Danfoss weigh in on how to introduce more smart options to c-stores and save cash on energy in the process.

Booker’s FareShare record

28 March 2023

Leading wholesaler Booker achieves a new milestone in its food redistribution work through deal with surplus food charity FareShare.

“Take notice” of demand for healthier soft drinks

5 April 2017

VIMTO has urged retailers to act on what it sees as growing demand for healthier soft drinks this summer. Ed Jones, senior customer marketing manager...

Master of its own destiny

30 July 2014

MALT whisky brand Glenfiddich is celebrating its 126th birthday with a global advertising push that celebrates the brand’s many years of family-owned independence. The strapline,...

Putting shops centre stage

2 February 2016

WITH Scottish general and local elections just months away, Scotland’s convenience industry representative group the Scottish Grocers Federation has taken its message about the...