Airdrie's Scotty Brand scaling up strawberry production with new Asda deal

Food producer Scotty Brand – launched in 1948 by Albert Bartlett – is upping the amount of strawberries it is having grown this year, after securing a major Asda contract.

Strawb dogs: a Scotty dog lends a helping hand as the firm boosts production. Picture: Julie Howden.

More than 200 tonnes of berries grown in Perthshire will be available to buy throughout 200 UK stores with the supermarket chain.

Michael Jarvis, head of marketing at the Airdrie-based firm, said: “Scottish berries are a big hit both north and south of the Border, so this year we are delighted that our Scotty Brand strawberries will be listed throughout the UK in Asda stores.”

The strawberries are grown and packed by Bruce Farms, based in Perthshire, which is renowned for its berries. This is their 25th year of growing the crop. Director Geoff Bruce said: “The climate this year has been perfect for growing berries. Strawberries take about 75 days to ripen in Scotland compared to about 60 days in England and about 45 days in Spain. The longer the ripening, the better the flavour.”

“Bruce Farms and Scotty Brand have been following to the clear guidelines implemented since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and we are fortunate to have such a vast amount of open space to adhere to the necessary social distancing requirements during the picking and packaging process.”

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