The Scottish Wholesale Association (SWA) has published a new guide to help Scotland’s food and drink wholesalers prepare for climate change and build long-term resilience in their businesses.
Produced in partnership with Adaptation Scotland, the report – Industry Insights: Climate Change Risks and Adaptation in the Scottish Food & Drink Wholesale Industry – outlines the key risks wholesalers face, from extreme weather and supply chain disruption to challenges with storage infrastructure.
The guide sets out practical steps businesses can take to adapt, covering areas such as workforce, premises, products, supply chain and the wider environment. It also includes real-world examples from wholesalers already taking action to reduce risk and strengthen resilience.
“Scotland’s food and drink wholesalers play a critical role in ensuring that food is available across the country. This crucial resource provides them with information, guidance, and tools to manage climate risks, implement adaptation strategies, and build resilience,” Ylva Haglund, the SWA’s head of sustainability and communications, said.
“We’re thrilled to be working with the Adaptation Scotland programme to support our members to become climate ready – helping to safeguard their businesses and protect access to food in the communities they serve in the process.”
Key adaptation actions for wholesalers, Haglund noted, are severe weather planning; flood-resilience measures; heat and humidity management; and building in resilience in the supply chain such as working with suppliers in different regions to reduce risks of running out of stock when disruptions happen.
Adaptation Scotland is delivered by Verture, the climate resistance charity, and funded by the Scottish government. Emilie Wadsworth, Verture’s leadership programme manager, commented: “Recent extreme weather events have highlighted the impact the climate can have on our economy, in particular supply chains, infrastructure and logistics.
“We are delighted to have been able to work with the Scottish Wholesale Association to produce this guide to support its members in recognising the risks to their businesses, employees and communities, and take steps to become more resilient in a changing climate.”
The new resource has been co-developed by SWA members including Bidfood and Greencity Wholefoods which both feature in case studies within the guide. There was an initial workshop with representatives from 11 companies.
Speaking about its own actions in response to a severe storm in early 2025, Greencity Wholefoods’ HR manager Leigh Galletly said: “When it became apparent that Storm Éowyn posed not just a significant threat to our ability to deliver but also to life, we kicked into action and came together to plan around it.
“As a result of that very extreme situation, and knowing that it may well reoccur, Greencity has devised an action plan to be better prepared for similar weather events going forward.”
At Bidfood, Julie Owst, head of sustainability, said: “Climate change poses many challenges to businesses – operational and financial impacts from extreme weather being just part of a bigger picture of change that businesses need to understand and respond to. Our customers rely on us delivering a reliable service, so taking action to mitigate the impacts of these operational challenges is crucial.”