Bumper tattie season at port as 65k tonnes sent overseas

Scotland’s largest freight hub at Grangemouth has witnessed a bumper tattie season with 65,000 tonnes of seed potatoes exported around the world.

The Port of Grangemouth has grown its annual volume as 150,00 containers moved through the terminal in 2022, including around 3,500 refrigerated containers of seed potatoes grown on farms throughout Scotland.

October and November are the port’s peak months for Scotland’s seed potato trade with containers shipped to countries such as Egypt, Morocco, Turkey, the Middle East, Taiwan and Thailand.

As well as potatoes, fish and seafood originating from all over Scotland move through the port in refrigerated containers to be shipped around the world to countries such as China, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Ukraine, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Greece.

Derek Knox, director of operations for Forth Ports, said the Port of Grangemouth handles around one million tonnes of food and drink products each year, including seafood, spirits and cheeses.

He said: “We have just had our busiest period of the year for our freight hub in Grangemouth and the Scottish tatties are just part of the goods we export globally in the winter months.

“This volume is handled by our efficient and experienced terminal teams ensuring everything is loaded on to vessels on time in order that cargo can meet connections to get to international destinations on time.”

The port will be a key part of the Forth Green Freeport after being successfully shortlisted earlier this month.

It has enjoyed significant investment recently, including more than 500,000 square feet of new warehousing space opening at the port over the past five years.

In December, five new straddle carriers arrived into port to increase its capacity for storing both conventional containers and reefers.

The new straddle carriers will replace five of the existing fleet of 16.

Grangemouth handles some of Scotland’s most valuable exports, such as fine foods and drinks.

More than £6 billion worth of goods pass through the port each year, including steel plate, timber, paper and equipment for the oil and gas industry.

EXPORTS: Grangemouth Port shipped containers to Morocco, Turkey and Thailand.