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Glasgow Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Glasgow Times
Japan ambassador tries Irn-Bru on visit to whisky distillery
His Excellency Hiroshi Suzuki – as he is styled – toured the Auchentoshan Distillery in Clydebank with First Minister John Swinney as the two discussed trade, including Scotland's national drink. But during his first visit to Scotland, he tried the nation's other national drink. Suzuki had tried Irn-Bru earlier during his visit but some Scots had urged him to taste the original 1901 recipe, which was phased out following the sugar tax. READ MORE: Man reunited with father's wartime documents found hidden in desk Handed a can by press, the Japanese ambassador said he was a big fan. 'It was fantastic,' he said. 'In my life, I have never had it before, but it was just, just great.' After taking a gulp of the older recipe Irn-Bru, he added: 'It is just great,' while giving it a thumbs up. The ambassador has become well-known online for trying different foods around the UK. A picture posted on Twitter/X of Suzuki trying a teacake gained more than 46,000 likes, while his video of eating haggis gained more than 800,000 views on the platform. Following a tour of the Auchentoshan Distillery, which is owned by the Japanese whisky firm Suntory, Suzuki said Japanese people loved Scottish whisky. He said Scotland was a 'very important' trading partner for Japan, adding: 'Japanese people love things like Scotch whisky, Scottish salmon, and recently, mackerel has been a great success. 'For the last couple of years, the export of mackerel from Scotland to Japan grew 10 times.' READ MORE: See inside the 2025 Scotland's Home of the Year finalists Suzuki said he 'hoped' trade between Scotland and Japan would continue to grow. The diplomat took part in a whisky tasting session with the First Minister, trying three drams. Swinney said that Auchentoshan Distillery was an 'excellent example' of the partnership between Scotland and Japan. He said: 'It's been my pleasure over the last couple of days to host a visit from the Japanese ambassador to Scotland. 'We've been using our time to cement links and connections between Scotland and Japan, and particularly yesterday, to engage with Japanese businesspeople who are investing in Scotland and who recognise Scotland as an attractive destination for investment, particularly in renewable energy, but also in life sciences, and as we see from our visit here today, in the whisky industry as well.'
The National
4 days ago
- Business
- The National
Japan ambassador tries Irn-Bru on visit to whisky distillery
His Excellency Hiroshi Suzuki – as he is styled – toured the Auchentoshan Distillery in Clydebank with First Minister John Swinney as the two discussed trade, including Scotland's national drink. But during his first visit to Scotland, he tried the nation's other national drink. Suzuki had tried Irn-Bru earlier during his visit but some Scots had urged him to taste the original 1901 recipe, which was phased out following the sugar tax. READ MORE: I tried Irn-Bru's two new flavours. Here's what they're like Handed a can by press, the Japanese ambassador said he was a big fan. 'It was fantastic,' he said. 'In my life, I have never had it before but it was just, just great.' After taking a gulp of the older recipe Irn-Bru, he added: 'It is just great,' while giving it a thumbs up. The ambassador has become well-known online for trying different foods around the UK. A picture posted on Twitter/X of Suzuki trying a teacake gained more than 46,000 likes, while his video of eating haggis gained more than 800,000 views on the platform. Following a tour of the Auchentoshan Distillery, which is owned by the Japanese whisky firm Suntory, Suzuki said Japanese people loved Scottish whisky. He said Scotland was a 'very important' trading partner for Japan, adding: 'Japanese people love things like Scotch whisky, Scottish salmon, and recently, mackerel has been a great success. 'For the last couple of years, the export of mackerel from Scotland to Japan grew 10 times.' READ MORE: SNP's 2026 candidates 'ignore' grassroots independence campaigners Suzuki said he 'hoped' trade between Scotland and Japan would continue to grow. The diplomat took part in a whisky tasting session with the First Minister, trying three drams. Swinney said that Auchentoshan Distillery was an 'excellent example' of the partnership between Scotland and Japan. He said: 'It's been my pleasure over the last couple of days to host a visit from the Japanese ambassador to Scotland. 'We've been using our time to cement links and connections between Scotland and Japan, and particularly yesterday, to engage with Japanese businesspeople who are investing in Scotland and who recognise Scotland as an attractive destination for investment, particularly in renewable energy, but also in life sciences, and as we see from our visit here today, in the whisky industry as well.'
The Herald Scotland
5 days ago
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Tennent's chief pins hopes on Scotland's 'resilient' pubs
Profits were up from €60m the year before, underlining C&C's continuing recovery from several major internal challenges, including a botched upgrade to the ordering system for its wine and spirits wholesaling business, Matthew Clark Bibendum. The company is guiding the City on profits rising 'marginally' in the current year. Despite an 'encouraging' start to the current year, boosted by the recent spell of warm sunny weather, Mr White said the challenges facing the industry are 'writ large'. Mr White, who led Irn-Bru maker AG Barr for two decades before joining C&C, told The Herald: 'We've got costs which are challenging for them [hospitality operators] coming through in terms of [increases in employer] national insurance and minimum wage. It is tough for consumers to make ends meet. Despite the recent weeks of decent weather, it will continue to have a dampening effect on the industry. 'But, you know, it is a pretty resilient industry as well. I think we are cautious, but we remain optimistic that the hospitality industry will work its way through.' Read more: C&C Group, which is headquartered in Dublin, reported that net revenue increased by 13% to €1.665 billion for the year ended February 28, in line with expectations. Growth in distribution was offset by the disposal of its non-core soft drinks business in Ireland, lower contract volumes, and a softer cider market in the UK and Ireland attributed to poor summer weather in 2024. Mr White said that flagship brands Tennent's, Scotland's highest-selling lager, and Bulmers Irish cider (sold under the Magners brand in Great Britain) had gained market share last year, and noted that the company sees 'future growth opportunities for both'. Although last year saw the men's Euro 2024 football championship take place in Germany - the type of event which brings a natural boost to beer volumes - Mr White is not concerned about C&C's results for this year being affected by tough comparisons with last time. With an estimated 200,000 to 300,000 Scotland fans having travelled to Germany for the tournament last summer, this meant the Tennent's brand was without a 'lot of core consumers for a fairly important part of the year' in its domestic market. 'So I don't think that the 'comps' [comparisons] are particularly impacted by the football of last year,' Mr White added. C&C also signalled that it was recovering customer momentum within Matthew Clark Bibendum, following the upheaval arising from the flawed implementation of an ERP (enterprise resource planning) system in May 2023. Mr White said: 'I think the actual issues that were ERP implementation related are past us now. We're still building confidence with those customers who had a tougher time at that difficult period, but I've been encouraged in all my conversations with our customers that our service level is now back to where they would want it to be. 'I don't think we are where we would want to be yet, but we are certainly a lot better and giving people a really strong service and our objective now is just to keep that going consistently for the summer and the balance of the year.' Deutsche Bank Group said in a research note for investors: 'We think C&C's FY25 results highlight an improved 2H delivery against a challenging backdrop. FY25 operating profit of €77.1m was 2% ahead of consensus, reflecting improved margins across both the branded and distribution businesses. 'Notwithstanding some of the industry headwinds we think C&C has stabilised.' The note added: 'FY26 expectations are unchanged and current trading is 'encouraging'. We think the new management team are well placed to drive shareholder value creation from here.' Shares in C&C Group, which is listed in London, closed up 3.23%, or 5p, at 159.8p.
Scotsman
6 days ago
- Business
- Scotsman
Tennent's to ‘excite customers with new things' as market share grows further
'Tennent's is an amazing brand. One in every two pints of lager sold in Scotland is Tennent's.' – Roger White, C&C Group chief executive Sign up to our Scotsman Money newsletter, covering all you need to know to help manage your money. Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Scotland's best-selling beer has gained further market share despite ongoing cost-of-living pressures and fallout from last year's Euro 24 football tournament. Tennent's parent company C&C Group said the iconic Glasgow-brewed lager had outperformed total beer market performance in the on-trade sector, increasing market value share by 0.9 per cent in the 12 months to the end of February. However, Tennent's total brand net revenues were down 2 per cent in the period, with higher pricing partly offsetting a volume decline of 6 per cent. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Releasing its full-year results, C&C said the outcome reflected the impact of poorer weather over the summer and the 'temporary impact' of the Euro football tournament, when an estimated 200,000 Scotland fans travelled to Germany over the period, knocking Tennent's sales closer to home. Tennent's, which is brewed in Glasgow, and owned by Irish firm C&C Group remains Scotland's best-selling beer brand. Brand investment in the year centred on Tennent's sponsorship of Scottish football as well as the continuation of the lager's successful 'Oooft' campaign. The annual results were the first for Irish C&C Group under the leadership of Roger White, who took the helm as chief executive towards the end of January, having led AG Barr, the Cumbernauld-headquartered maker of Irn-Bru, for 22 years until May last year. White, who was one of Scotland's longest-serving chief executives before he stepped down at the famous soft drinks maker, pointed to progress on a number of fronts over the past year, despite the ongoing challenging macro and market backdrop. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'It's good to be here and I think it was a pretty resilient performance from the group last year, recovering from some of the prior year's challenges,' he told The Scotsman. 'We are moving in the right direction but there's plenty to do. Roger White is the chief executive of C&C Group, having previously led Irn-Bru maker AG Barr. Picture: Rich Davenport 'Tennent's is an amazing brand. One in every two pints of lager sold in Scotland is Tennent's,' White noted. 'It appeals to a very broad-based consumer group but there's a lot I think we can do with it. 'It has been reasonably well invested over the last few years from a broad marketing point of view but it hasn't had a lot of development work done to it. There isn't a lot of innovation or breadth to the Tennent's portfolio. 'From my point of view, although it's early days, there is plenty we can do to excite our customers with new things from Tennent's.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Those future plans could target further gains in the popular low and no alcohol beer markets and undertaking 'one-off special brews'. C&C Group's other brands include Bulmers. C&C Group posted adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) of €112 million (£94m) for the year to February 28, up by almost a fifth on the previous 12 months. The key operating profit measure saw growth of 28.5 per cent to €77.1m (£65m), with improved operating margins in the branded and distribution segments. Net revenues came in at just under €1.67 billion, up from about €1.65bn previously. White said the group, whose other brands include Bulmers, Magners, Menabrea and Orchard Pig, had seen limited tariff impact on trading and costs in recent weeks. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'There is a macro impact on the economy and confidence but we have relatively little exposure to outbound or inbound movement of goods,' he added. 'However, we are keeping a close eye on what's going on.' The group warned that overall employment costs in the UK would grow in the coming year due to the increase in the national minimum wage and employer national insurance (NI) contributions announced in last autumn's Budget, and implemented from last month. The introduction of further legislative activity, such as the extended producer responsibility levy and the already introduced deposit return scheme in Ireland, will cause further price inflation, C&C added. White said the NI and wage hikes were having a significant impact on bars and restaurants, but pledged to 'support our hospitality customers at what is a pretty difficult time for them'. Greg Johnson, an analyst at brokerage Shore Capital, said C&C's full-year results were 'very much in line' with his expectations including solid underlying cash generation. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad He added: 'With an encouraging start to the new financial year, we would not envisage any change to forecasts and look forward to the group executing on its medium-term targets for operating profit building back to €100m. 'The preliminary results are the first under new CEO Roger White, and we are encouraged by the reconfirmation of this commitment, with the statement highlighting opportunities through business simplification, reinvigorating Magners, developing its premium drinks portfolio and market share gains in distribution. Comments around the potential across the core brands of Bulmers and Tennent's also piqued our interest.' Tariff impact Analysts at Davy Research noted: 'Management anticipates limited tariff impact on trading and costs. Current focus for management remains supporting customers, investing behind core brands, people and systems, whilst continuing to simplify the business and control costs.' In his statement to investors, White said: 'Looking ahead, year to date trading is encouraging. With the key summer trading period ahead, we are executing our plans for the year, supporting our customers, investing in innovation and brand-building, people and systems, whilst continuing to simplify the business and control costs. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad
STV News
22-05-2025
- General
- STV News
Scotland's national chef shares top five BBQ tips
Scotland's national chef has shared his top five BBQ tips for enjoying a stress-free family cookout. MasterChef champion and Scotland's first national chef, Gary Maclean, has shared his top recipes and tips to commemorate National BBQ Week and in support of Mary's Meals. The chef is encouraging people to dine al fresco and donate to the charity which feeds more than 2.6 million children every school day in 16 countries across the world. Mary's Meals MasterChef champion Gary Maclean is sharing his top recipes and tips. 'It costs only £19.15 to feed a child with Mary's Meals for a school year, just 10p a meal, which is such incredible value,' Gary said. He added that to celebrate National BBQ Week, Scots could ask family and friends for a small donation to come along. 'If you use my five top tips, you'll make your guests happy all while giving hope to hungry children,' he said. Marinate ahead: Marinate meat overnight to build flavour and tenderise. A mix of whisky, honey, cracked pepper, and thyme works well with pork, chicken, or game. Bring to room temperature: Take meat or fish out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking. It'll cook more evenly and won't stick to the grill as much. Use two heat zones: Set your barbecue with a hot side for searing and a cooler side for finishing. It gives you more control and helps avoid flare-ups. Add a bit of smoke: A handful of soaked oak chips or sprigs of rosemary on the coals adds great flavour. Dried heather works too, if you have it. Rest before carving: Let meat rest under foil before serving. It keeps it juicy and gives you better texture. As well as the top tips, the chef also served up four barbecue recipes with a Scottish twist. Haggis-stuffed peppers: Fill peppers with traditional or veggie haggis and grill until charred and smoky. Whisky-glazed venison burgers: Swap beef for venison and brush with a whisky and honey glaze. Serve with pickled onions on a soft roll. Aberdeen Angus brisket with Irn-Bru glaze: Slow-cook brisket with a smoky rub, then glaze with reduced Irn-Bru for a sweet finish. Seaweed butter corn: Grill corn and brush with butter mixed with dried seaweed or samphire. Salty, savoury, and very moreish. With donations, children like 11-year-old Melanie from Madagascar enjoy a nutritious meal at school today and work towards a brighter tomorrow. 'Thank you, Mary's Meals. We are always full at school and that motivates us to work hard. I study because I want to achieve my goals and help my parents when I succeed,' she said. Dan McNally, head of Grassroots at Mary's Meals, says: 'It costs just 10p to provide one school meal to a hungry child with Mary's Meals. With a £5 donation at your next barbecue, we can reach 50 children with a nutritious meal. He added: 'If you purchase a cooking apron from our online shop ahead of hosting your own summer barbecue, your £15 donation will feed 150 children in school. With the sun out and with Gary's top tips, there's never been a better time to get grilling, all while supporting Mary's Meals!' To find out more visit Mary's Meals website. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
