Cheers... whisky exports soar to £4bn

ALMOST 39 bottles of Scotch whisky were exported per second last year as the industry saw overseas sales rise by more than 4 per cent to more than £4billion.

The Scotch Whisky Association’s (SWA) 2016 export report found overseas sales rose by £153million from 2015 to £4,008,927,149 last year.

But the SWA called for a sector deal for Scotland’s national drink in Brexit negotiations to help combat uncertainty.

The number of bottles dispatched increased by 4.8 per cent between 2015 and 2016 to more than 1.2billion, meaning almost 39 bottles, worth a total of £127, were exported per second.

Both the value and volume of Scotch exports returned to positive annual growth rates for the first time since 2011.

Single malt exports were worth more than £1billion for the first time, up by almost 12 per cent on 2015 to £1.02billion, equivalent to 113million bottles. But blended whisky remains the biggest export category, with 69 per cent of value and volumes exported in 2016.

SWA acting chief executive Julie Hesketh-Laird said: ‘We’re feeling optimistic about the future. However, we have to be alert to the challenges.

‘We need both the UK and Scottish governments to work in partnership with us to deliver a business environment that supports sustainable growth.’