Aldi to showcase north-east suppliers at Royal Highland Show

Supermarket giant Aldi to highlight produce from 18 Scottish suppliers including Downies Fish, Kindness Bakery and Angus Soft Fruits from the north-east

By Jacqueline Wake Young

June 23 2023, 11:45 am

The Kindness Bakery will be featured at The Royal Highland Show.

Three food businesses from the north-east of Scotland will take centre stage at this year’s Royal Highland Show, as part of Aldi Scotland’s supplier showcase.

Now in its 201st year, Scotland’s biggest outdoor event will return to the Ingliston showground in Edinburgh to showcase the best of the country’s food, farming, and rural life, and is expected to attract around 200,000 people.

Finest local produce

Aldi will be showcasing 18 of its Scottish suppliers on its stand at Avenue O30(P), giving visitors the chance to sample some of the country’s finest local produce, including from Turriff-based The Kindness Bakery; Downies Fish of Whitehills, near Banff; and Angus Soft Fruits, headquartered in Arbroath.

The Kindness Bakery in Turriff is one of the suppliers to be showcased.

Alan Downie, managing partner at Downies, said: “We are proud to be included in the group of suppliers showcasing products at Aldi’s Royal Highland Show marquee.

“The stand always represents a great celebration of fantastic Scottish produce and we’re looking forward to hearing what visitors have to say about our award-winning Cullen Skink.”

Working in partnership

Mark Kindness, director at Kindness Bakery, said: “At Kindness Bakery we feel we are truly working in partnership with Aldi, and it makes us hugely proud to be able to go into any Aldi store in Scotland and see our products on the shelves.

“Aldi’s ethos of sourcing, supporting and selling Scottish produce is one we greatly admire, and we’re delighted to be sampling our produce with Aldi again at this year’s Royal Highland Show.”

Kindness Bakery will have some of its products to sample.

The leading supplier of berries to UK and European retailers, Angus Soft Fruits will be offering up a range of fresh Scottish berries including strawberries, blackberries and raspberries.

Visitors can also sample Downie’s award-winning Cullen Skink, while Kindness Bakery will be on hand to provide samples from its range of Specially Selected Oatcake Bites, with a choice from Fiery Chilli, Black Pepper and Lockerbie Cheddar.

For anyone not able to make it along this year, all products are available in the supermarket’s 104 Scottish stores.

Downies supplies award-winning Cullen Skink to Aldi.

John Gray, managing director at Angus Soft Fruits, said: “We are very much looking forward to supporting Aldi at this year’s Royal Highland Show by offering visitors a chance to sample our range of delicious Scottish berries grown by our select group of growers.

“We are very proud of the close working relationship we have built with Aldi over the years, and we’re excited to see this relationship continue to go from strength to strength.”

Angus Soft Fruits will also be among the 18 Aldi suppliers on display at The Royal Highland Show.

Graham Nicolson, group buying director of Aldi Scotland, said: “The Royal Highland Show is something we look forward to every year and I am very grateful to our network of suppliers who are supporting us at this year’s event.

“We are very proud of the strong relationship we have built with our Scottish suppliers over the years, which gives our customers the opportunity to purchase high-quality products at everyday low prices.

“I’m sure visitors to the Aldi stand will enjoy the opportunity to sample the best of what Angus Soft Fruits, Downies and Kindness Bakery has to offer this year.”

This year’s Royal Highland Show started on Thursday June 22 and runs until Sunday June 25, at Ingliston, Edinburgh.