Users of this site must be aged 18 years or over
We want you to enjoy Caledonia Best responsibly. That's why you must be old enough by law to buy alcohol.
The seed fund
Sowing seeds for a brighter future
Marking the first anniversary since the launch of Caledonia Best, we have unveiled the exciting mix of projects being backed by our Seed Fund initiative in November 2012, aiming to support fledgling businesses in brewing and farming throughout Scotland.
The Seed Fund has seen £58,000 generated to support innovative projects which may not have otherwise been able to happen - raised through a 5p donation in every pint sold in the first six months of the year.
The application process opened in June 2012, and Caledonia Best has worked closely with partners from National Farmers Union Scotland (NFUS) and Heriot-Watt University's International Centre for Brewing and Distilling (ICBD) to decide which of the applicants should be awarded funding.
The Caledonia Best Seed Fund has awarded seven applicants the financial support necessary to get their projects off the ground.
Keen to find out more?
If you would like any more information about the Seed Fund or any of the projects the Caledonia Best initiative is supporting, please contact:
Rachael Gasiorowski or Vicki Byers
Burt Greener Communications
0131 220 0003
Who has the funding been awarded to?
The Caledonia Best Seed Fund has awarded seven applicants the financial support necessary to get their projects off the ground, with grants ranging from £5,000 to £13,000. The successful proposals cover a diverse range of innovative businesses in both industries, detailed below:
- St Andrews' Eden Brewery has received funding to buy machinery which will enable the business to flourish.
- Young graduate, Victoria Gardiner, will use the backing awarded by the Seed Fund to purchase the goats she needs to build the Scottish Goat Meat Company she founded with her partner, Adam Wright. Goat farming is a market she studied and discovered has been broadly overlooked in Scotland until now.
- The NFUS New Generation Group will use the funding offered to develop their communication skills to ensure Scotland is at the forefront of the farming community throughout Europe.
- Scottish Borders Brewery and The Big Tree Society are planning an innovative collaboration to develop a new range of beers that will be naturally sourced through foraging.
- Dunfermline's Abbot House has been granted funding to renovate and restore an outhouse into what was formerly one of Scotland's most successful breweries.
- Anna Thompson will launch a range of Scottish flour, which she will mill on the farm she works on with her husband - something she has planned for years, but could only be made a reality after receiving Seed Fund support.
- Aspiring farmer, Peter Will has been awarded funding to purchase the stock necessary to start a farming company outside Glasgow, with a view to beginning his own butchery business.