Consumers urged to eat more venison

The initiative, launched today by Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead, marks a coming together of Scotland's venison industry in a bid to raise awareness of their product among consumers, and the restaurant, catering and food service trade. The scheme, which has been developed by the Scottish Venison Working Group, is intended as a three-year push that, through increased consumer and trade demand, will raise quality standards more widely and should encourage producers to bring more venison to the market. Tom Lewis of Monachyle Mhor, Balquhidder, Mr Lochhead said: "This new initiative will help raise awareness of the increasing availability of one of our most iconic products. A significant proportion of venison is now produced to Scottish Quality Wild Venison (SQWV) standards and it is one of healthiest products on the market." Central to the initiative is the launch of a new web portal for Scottish venison that will give both trade customers and consumers a one-stop source for anything they want to know. The site features all information including the venison story, quality assurance, health benefits, education pages, and news about Scottish venison. One focus will be to tell the consumer where to buy and where to eat Scottish venison, coupled with recipes from chefs, and recipes and serving suggestions submitted by the public. Chef Tom Lewis continued: "Chefs have always recognised that Scottish venison is a great product, as it is delicious, nutritious, easy to cook and you can be as creative as you like. It's a very versatile meat, which lends itself to all types of cooking, from exotic meals to simple fare and from posh dinners to family tea."