ATTEMPTS to raise awareness of the quality and provenance of assured Scotch meat via a nationwide 'Meat with Integrity' campaign have been a success, according to Quality Meat Scotland.

The campaign, which launched in the summer, was intended to drive consumer awareness of the 'exceptional credentials in terms of animal welfare and sustainability' of Scotch Beef PGI, Scotch Lamb PGI and Specially Selected Pork, via a series of videos featuring four farmers, a butcher and a chef.

This week, QMS reported that those videos had been viewed to completion over 200,000 times online, with viewers then encouraged to visit the Meat with Integrity website to learn more about the high production and animal welfare standards which underpin the brands.

The campaign was supported by billboard advertising at over 200 high visibility sites throughout Scotland, plus conventional press and radio advertising, alongside online 'PR and influencer' marketing, which included partnerships with bloggers Foodie Quine and Lifestyle Hunter, with a combined reach of over 60,000. Social media material across the QMS Scotch Kitchen’s own Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts reached over 1.9 million people.

QMS chief executive Alan Clarke said: “The aim of Meat with Integrity was to drive consumer awareness of Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb and Specially Selected Pork’s exceptional welfare and sustainability credentials and we are delighted to see the campaign has proven to be memorable and impactful with consumers.

“In order to cut through the constant flow of unbalanced, and often inaccurate, coverage by some parts of the media, it is absolutely imperative that we continue to strongly communicate to consumers the difference between Scotland’s production systems and animal welfare standards and others across the globe.

“Our industry is in stark contrast to intensive production methods and deforestation which are used in other countries," stressed Mr Clarke. "We have an abundant, natural fresh water supply and produce quality beef and lamb from the grass and rough grazing which make up around 80% of Scotland’s agricultural land which is not suitable for cereal, fruit or vegetable production. Scotland’s grassland also acts as a carbon sink and grazing animals provide habitats for wildlife and help to maintain the landscape."

Mr Clarke said that QMS would be bringing back the Meat with Integrity campaign in the New Year, and shining a light on other individuals who take pride in producing, and working with, quality Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb and Specially Selected Pork.