Scottish Government

Role in project: Participant in WPs 2, 3, 4, 7 & 8

The Scottish Government is the devolved government for Scotland and is responsible (amongst other things) for local government, health, education, food, environment, agriculture and fisheries. The Scottish Government has produced a national food and drink policy that sets out how the Scottish Government will support the growth of our food and drink Industry; build on our reputation as a land of food and drink; ensure we make healthy and sustainable choices; make our public sector an exemplar for sustainable food procurement; ensure our food supplies are secure and resilient to change; make food both available and affordable to all; and ensure that our people understand more about the food they eat.
The Scottish Government recognises that the successful delivery of our national food and drink policy relies on a sound evidence base needed to tackle major challenges including global climate change and food security. The Scottish Government currently supports science and innovation in Scotland through a variety of routes including strategic programme funding to its Main Research Providers (The James Hutton Institute, Moredun Research Institute, Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health, and Scottish Agricultural College) which together provide an excellent evidence base in food, crop, animal, soil, biodiversity and land use science.
The Scottish Government liaises closely with other UK funders of food research, with industry, with academia and with NGOs to maximise the contribution of our research outputs to the aims of policy in support of industry and society as a whole.

Profile of staff members working on the project: Dr. Pieter van de Graaf is the Scientific Adviser for Food to the Scottish Government covering this area in a very wide sense, including related aspects of public health and crop production. His main role is to advise Scottish ministers on relevant science matters and to liaise between policy colleagues and the Scottish research institutes, in particular The James Hutton Institute and Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health. This involves translating scientific data into policy relevant information and vice versa, making decisions on research funding, and liaising with other funding bodies. Dr. Amanda Fox is head of the Industry Liaison Team at the Food & Drink Industry Division of the Scottish Government working with the Scottish Food and Drink Industry to deliver Scotland’s National Food and Drink Policy and sponsor of areas such as supply chains, retailing, organics, seafood, processing, manufacturing, labelling and the food service sector. Robin Gourlay is part of the Public Sector Liaison Team at the Food & Drink Industry Division of the Scottish Government working with Scotland’s public sector to deliver Scotland’s National Food and Drink Policy. He leads on public sector food procurement.