Farming: Oiling the wheels of commerce at an early age

A YOUNG Aberdeenshire farming entrepreneur was given the opportunity yesterday to tell the conference how he had developed a healthy new product which is already available in Asda stores in Scotland.

Gregor Mackintosh, 23, of Peterhead, developed the idea of producing cold pressed oilseed rape oil from rape grown on the family farm as part of his dissertation for an honours degree in agriculture at SAC Aberdeen and has put his business plan into practice since graduating two years ago.

"I had an ambition to run my own business and the market research and business plan put together for my dissertation was the catalyst for developing the business," he told delegates.

Mackintosh claimed his product was unique in meeting consumer demand for locally produced, healthy cooking oil. Its unique selling point was containing ten times more omega-3 than olive oil which was an imported product.