Japanese snap up Scottish lobster

Orders of Scottish lobsters to Japan have been tripled for a Scottish company as a result of the Scottish Development International and Scotland Food and Drink trade mission to Asia last week.

The Scottish Deli, based in Pitlochry and Dunkeld, has been supplying langoustines and lobster to Japan since August. Following a successful meeting with its importer in Tokyo, the company has tripled its next order to Japan and added another five top end fish and shellfish products to its range of exports to Japan. They will be sold in 20 michelin star restaurants in Tokyo.

The deal is the first of many that are expected to be sealed in the coming months as a result of meetings held during the mission.

Alec Cruikshank, Managing Director of The Scottish Deli, said: "Visiting Japan and China really helped to open my eyes to the huge opportunties across Asia and develop new contacts.

"We already had our next shipment to Japan planned but after meeting our importer, they decided to increase the order three fold and they're committed to taking more of our products in the future.

"Last week's mission also helped me to make some other really useful contacts so I'm confident this is just the start of something very exciting."

The Scottish Deli was one of 17 Scottish companies visiting Japan and China as part of last week's trade mission.

The companies visited nine top retailers and supermarkets in Japan and China to understand the market opportunities better and what Asian consumers are looking for in terms of branding, packaging and price.

SDI also organised 130 one-to-one meetings to introduce the companies to buyers, importers and distributors in Japan and China and organised four industry receptions to showcase Scottish food and drink to top chefs, hotels, restaurants and retailers.

Anne MacColl, chief executive of Scottish Development International, said: "It is fantastic to see one of our companies winning new orders from Japan just days after participating on the trade mission. The visit demonstrated the huge potential of the Asia market for Scottish companies to increase their export performance. All of the companies met potential buyers in Japan and China and we're expecting many more deals to be done in the coming weeks and months."

Scotland's Food and Drink Minister Richard Lochhead said:

"This is fantastic news for Scottish Deli which will see premium Scottish lobster served on more plates in the very best Japanese restaurants. It is absolutely great that a company has been able to see a good result immediately.

"There was a phenomenal number of meetings held throughout the week in both Japan and China which were hugely positive and many of the companies in the delegation were overwhelmed by the level of interest in Scotland's fabulous larder. I'm sure this is only the start of deals being concluded as a result of the trade mission."

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