After weeks of speculation, Scotbeef has announced the sale of their abattoir at Bridge of Allan and meat packing facility at Queenslie, Glasgow, to ABP Foods.

The sale which is expected to be complete by the end of July 2023, follows the loss of its Scottish beef supplier contract with supermarket giant Aldi.

The takeover and the subsequent reduction in the number of meat wholesalers actively seeking prime cattle in Scotland is already having repercussions, with deadweight cattle prices falling significantly over the past two weeks.

There also remains a question mark over the future of the Premier Meat Exhibition – The Scottish National Fatstock Club's live/dead competition of prime beef cattle and lambs from exhibitors across Scotland and the North of England, staged in conjunction with Scotbeef – in November.

Scotbeef CEO Robbie Galloway said, "This sale is the right move for our staff and producer suppliers, and also for Scottish agriculture as it secures the ongoing viability of these slaughtering and packing facilities in Scotland.

“Like Scotbeef, ABP is a family run business and we have been working closely with them to ensure a smooth transition. We are appreciative of the support and help we have received from the Goodman family and their ABP colleagues as we have gone through this process. We wish them well for the future with this acquisition."

Scotbeef will continue to operate from their sites in Inverurie, East Kilbride, Annan, Heysham and Woverhampton.

In 2018, a new £17m Scotbeef processing plant was given planning permission by Aberdeenshire Council to be built at Inverurie, but no construction has been started to date.

Frank Stephenson, group chief executive of ABP said: “We look forward to working with the team in Scotbeef to ensure a smooth and seamless transition for farmer suppliers, colleagues and customers at the Queenslie and Bridge of Allan plants.

“It will be very much business as usual with a commitment to building on Scotbeef’s well-established tradition and reputation for high-quality Scottish red meat products.”

ABP has been in the meat processing business for almost 70 years and the company has been operating in Scotland for over 40 years.