Scotland’s Perth Food and Drink Park ready for companies to move in

Perth Food and Drink Park, a project to boost industry growth in Scotland, is now ready for start-ups and established businesses to move their operatations into it.

Intended as Scotland’s first food and drink sector hub, the site plans to invite inward investment.

With a £5m investment by Perth and Kinross Council, Perth Food and Drink Park is a 16-acre easily accessible facility of premium land to the north of the city, at North Muirton, offering up to 11 serviced development plots in the range of one to three acres.

Units can be combined to form bigger properties. Each site will be provide water and drainage, medium pressure, HV electricity, telecoms and superfast broadband. Once occupied, the dedicated park will be able to provide up to 400 jobs.

The £13.1bn food and drink industry of Scotland is one of the main growth factors in the country’s economy and has the potential to rise to £16.5bn by 2017. In Perth and Kinross alone, there are around 130 companies in the processing sector, while the estimated annual turnover of the food and drink sector is £280m.

Perth and Kinross Council councillor and enterprise and infrastructure committee convener John Kellas said: "Perthshire has unrivalled heritage and credentials in food and drink, evidenced by the likes of its superb beef, lamb and venison, its soft fruit industry and world-famous whisky distillers, as well as a range of artisan and specialist producers.

"We are passionate about continuing to see the food and drink industry in both Perthshire, and Scotland, thrive. We have identified food and drink as an area of outstanding growth and have committed substantial investment into helping businesses in this sector through the creation of Perth Food and Drink Park.

"With Perth Food and Drink Park now ‘open for business’, it’s an unparalleled opportunity for companies to take advantage of creating purpose-built premises while enjoying the benefits of shared business infrastructure and support facilities. The Perth Food and Drink Park demonstrates the clear intent to position Perth as the most desirable place to live, work, visit and invest."

Strategically located and just an hour’s drive away for almost one million people, it is bound by arable land to the north and the River Tay on the east.

Invest in Perth, Perth and Kinross’ global inward investment campaign, manages marketing part of the park together with the council’s investment and business development team.

To promote the park globally, an all-inclusive marketing programme comprising attendance at major industry exhibitions and endorsement through the Scottish Cities Alliance is being planned along with the help of marketing agents such as GVA James Barr.