TEN YEARS AGO
Thursday November 7, 2013
Chinese get their teeth into Nevis shortbread
Half a tonne of Lochaber shortbread will soon be winging its way east for the Chinese
market.
But the consignment, from Nevis Bakery in Fort William, will arrive just after First
Minister Alex Salmond has returned home from his trade and tourism mission to
China.
Lochaber is already exporting salmon and whisky to the Orient and Nevis Shortbread is the latest high quality product to head east.
It all came about thanks to a discussion between Nevis Bakery managing director
Archie Paterson and businesswoman Hong Macpherson, who is married to a
Scotsman.
Hong, who lives in Newton Mearns, is a former buyer with What Every Woman
Wants. She now runs her own export company, RH Impex. After samples had been tasted in Fort William by Hong and some of her contacts, she confirmed Nevis shortbread would have instant appeal to the Chinese palate.
In particular, the bakery’s Demerara Round took, if not the biscuit, the
shortbread equivalent.
Mr Paterson said: ‘Our plain shortbread was tried first but when they sampled the
demerara sugar version, they were bowled over, as the Chinese are sweet-
toothed.’
By this time next week, 600 kilos of Nevis Bakery shortbread will be en route to
Beijing’s stores and upmarket delis but by then the First Minister will be back in
Scotland.
Earlier this week, he said: ‘I’ll be promoting our excellent food and drink that China already adores.’
Archie and Hong are also looking into exporting to Taiwan.
TWENTY FIVE YEARS AGO
Saturday November 7, 1998
Safeway gets the go ahead
Supermarket chain Safeway received the go-ahead on Monday to extend the retail
floor space at its Fort William store by 4,000 square feet, enlarging the provision
to 24,000 square feet.
The Lochaber area planning committee had previously deferred the Safeway application pending a response from the company on a number of aspects related to the exterior of its An Aird premises.
Assurances have now been received that Safeway will:
• Provide significant sponsorship towards the cost of a bus station/shelter and
relevant timetable information boards at the side of the supermarket building
• Improve traffic circulation lanes in the car park
• Re-establish the glass recycling and bottle banks in the car park
• Retain the tree landscaping in the car park
Planning manager Ken Johnston, in recommending approval for the store extension,
said he felt Safeway was making substantial concessions.
Committee chairman Councillor Michael Foxley agreed, although he considered ‘absurd’ the figure of £25,000 which Safeway had put on the removal of the raised
kerbing around the parking bays and its replacement with metal grilles.
Councillor Olwyn Macdonald commented that Safeway had gone a long way towards
satisfying the committee’s requirements and thanked Councillor Foxley, as
chairman, for insisting on these aspects.
Later in the day, the full Lochaber area committee rubber-stamped the Safeway application for landlord’s consent in relation to the supermarket extension, which will allow the company to expand its fresh meat, poultry and wet fish departments.
SEVENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO
Saturday November 6, 1948
A little more fat and a little more sugar
John Stracher, Minister of Food, announced on Monday, the following changes in
the food ration:
Fats – Domestic ration of cooking fat increased from 1oz to 2ozs per week for 16
weeks, beginning December 5.
Sugar -Domestic ration to be raised to 10ozs a week from December 5.
Preserves – Jam, marmalade and fruit curd will cease to be rationed on December 5.
Imported honey will go on points on November 7.
Sweets -The ration to go up from 12ozs to 1lb beginning December 5.
Cheaper sweets will be de-rationed in the New Year.
Mr Stracher also announced more supplies of fats for fish fryers and more cooking
fats for catering establishments. There will also be larger allowances of sugar for the manufacture of preserves, sweets, cakes and flour confectionery, biscuits, syrups,
coffee essence pickles and sauces, cornflakes, table jellies, ice cream, cream puddings,
cakes and pudding mixtures, infant foods, quick-frozen fruit and canned spaghetti.
Ardnamurchan pier
Ardnamurchan pier will not re-open in the meantime as British Railways consider a number of admiralty buoys would have to be removed before passenger steamers could call at the pier.
Skye roads
At a meeting of Inverness County Council in the Castle, Inverness, on October 21, with
Lochiel KT presiding, reports were submitted.
Mr D Beaton, Waternish, said that unless they got more money for some of roads in Skye, these would be in a deplorable condition by next spring.
Lochiel said they were continually pressing for this, but the answer they got was that
the money was not there.
Lord Macdonald said if their estimate for next year was approved of a great deal of
the arrears in maintenance, improvements would be carried out.
Mr James Gillies, Raasay, drew attention to the condition of Raasay Pier and to the
urgent necessity to have it reconstructed. Considerable damage had recently been done to the south end of the pier. There was now only one end of the pier available.
He felt very much for the skipper of the steamer on the route. It was their life-link
with the mainland and he anticipated severe conditions for the Raasay people
owing to the condition of the pier.
County Clerk Mr Wallace said the Department of Agriculture’s engineers had submitted a detailed report of what was required.
The estimated cost of the work was £8,700. The property and works committee recommended that the department should be asked whether they were prepared to make a grant towards the cost.
Lord Macdonald said the £8,700 scheme was reconstruction and Mr Gillies was
referring to urgent repairs.
ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO
Saturday November 3, 1923
An outstanding record of success
MacKenzie. Second row: Ethel Black, Margaret Vance, Archibald MacMillan, Chrissie Dunn, Morag Stewart, Flora MacIntyre. Front row: Annie Blair, Catherine MacInnes, Miss Morag Cameron, conductor; Miss
Grant, Margaret Vance, Flossie MacCallum. In front: Duncan MacIntyre, Donald Dunn.
Formed two years ago, Ballachulish Junior Gaelic Choir has already created a record of which Miss Cameron, the able and energetic conductor, and members should feel proud.
The first Mod at which they competed was the Fort William Mod last year, when
members secured nine prizes, including the Silver Medal of the Comunn for girl
soloists, Miss Chrissie Dunn.
At the last Provincial Mod in Oban, choir members secured nine first prizes.
They won first prize in all the oral events and in all the vocal events, with the exception of the competition in choral singing.
At the recent Inverness Mod, they secured The Oban Times Shield and the Silver Medal of the Comunn for boy singers, Ian MacInnes, and four first prizes, four
seconds and four thirds.
Suggested re-opening of diamond factory
Correspondence with Sir Murdoch MacDonald MP was submitted to Lochaber District Committee, from which it appeared he had approached the Ministry of Labour with a view to have the diamond factory at Fort William re-opened.
Sir Murdoch pointed out that the Bill in connection with the Brighton factory introduced last session had been deferred and that nothing could be done
as regards the factory at Fort William until the Bill came before Parliament again.
● A diamond cutting factory was opened in Brighton in 1917 to offer work to disabled
ex-servicemen. Others then opened in Wrexham, Cambridge and Fort William. The idea was to train up a highly-skilled workforce in Britain to rival other global diamond markets.
Ardnamurchan news
An application has been made by Ardnamurchan District Committee to have the entrance gate on the main road to Ardnamurchan connecting with the Fort William to Mallaig road widened.
As Ardnamurchan district is prepared to bear the cost, this was agreed to.
A letter from the Royal Scottish Automobile Club was read drawing the committee’s attention to a notice erected on the North Ballachulish road bearing the words, ‘Unsuitable for motor cars’.
The surveyor was instructed to have all notices erected by him in the district headed
‘Lochaber District Committee’ and signed by order of him as road surveyor.
Featured image: 2013: Archie Paterson of Nevis Bakery with the shortbread which is being exported to China. Photograph: lain Ferguson, The Write Image. NO_F44_FromOurFiles_23_01