Drink price plan threat to 300 whisky jobs

Published on Wednesday 11 November 2009 21:47

WHISKY giant Whyte & Mackay could be forced to close its main Scottish bottling plant and shed 300 jobs if the SNP government goes ahead with plans for minimum alcohol pricing.

The company has warned MSPs that it would be badly affected by proposals to introduce minimum drinks prices of 40p per unit of alcohol.

Minimum pricing is part of a raft of measures by the SNP government aimed at tackling Scotland's terrible record on alcohol-linked health problems.

Whyte & Mackay bosses claim such a move would undermine a key part of its business, making and bottling whisky for supermarkets' own-brand value labels.

Its bottling plant in Grangemouth would bear the brunt of the job losses and could be threatened with closure, according to a briefing the firm gave to opposition MSPs this week.

The scale of the potential job losses has shocked MSPs, who have already been left reeling by global drinks firm Diageo's decision to close its Johnnie Walker plant in Kilmarnock.

Conservative deputy leader Murdo Fraser said: "I have met with Whyte & Mackay and they are very concerned about minimum pricing.

"They have done their own study and are looking at somewhere in the region of 300 job losses if minimum pricing goes ahead. There was also a concern that it could severely impact on their Grangemouth bottling plant.

"This is a concern that goes right across the whisky sector. If minimum pricing comes in at a time when we are already in a global downturn, it will put them under severe pressure."

A Whyte & Mackay spokesman told The Scotsman yesterday: "We strongly believe that moves to introduce minimum pricing will have a significant negative impact across our business. We have met and briefed a number of stakeholders on the potential risks we see associated with the concept."

In some cases the price of an own-brand bottle of whisky could increase from as little as 8 to a minimum of 10.40 – that is 26 units at a minimum price of 40p a unit.

A company insider said:

"We supply a lot of supermarket own-brand whisky. If customers can pick up a well-known brand for the same price, then they probably will. That will be the impact of minimum pricing on a very practical level.

"That would have a severe impact. We are talking about 300 jobs across the company, with the bottling plant at Grangemouth under threat. We would also have to look at cutting jobs in other areas."

The SNP administration is expected to back a 40p per unit rate for all alcoholic drinks when it announces its full plans later this year.

A Scottish Government spokesman insisted minimum pricing would not have a serious impact on the whisky industry despite the dire warnings from Whyte & Mackay.

He said: "Minimum pricing can help cut Scotland's 2.25 billion alcohol misuse burden by targeting products like white cider and cheap spirits favoured by problem drinkers, while leaving the vast majority of sensibly-priced products – including all recognised brands of Scotch whisky – untouched."