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Mr Jimmy Buchan, CEO of the Scottish Seafood Association
The £10 million Scottish Seafood Business Resilience Fund for seafood processors has been welcomed by the Scottish Seafood Association.
Scottish Seafood Association CEO, Jimmy Buchan said: “We obviously welcome the funding package announced today by the Scottish Government as a measure of its intent to support the sector at this time of need.
With many seafood businesses fighting for survival, and in turn threatening livelihoods in coastal communities, the financial assistance scheme provides a combination of grants and loans to businesses suffering severe hardship following the shutdown of international markets and the food service industry across the UK.
The Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy and Tourism, Fergus Ewing MSP, has yet to lay out the guidelines on how seafoods processors can apply for the scheme and what they are entitled to.
On that subject Mr Buchan said “Clearly Scottish Seafood Association members are keen to learn more of the detail about how the scheme will operate, particularly the eligibility criteria, and we look forward to engaging with officials on that in the coming days.”
