A round-up of the weekend's news affecting the hospitality industry...
Scottish restaurants ordered to label origin of beef on menus
Restaurants in Scotland are to be ordered to rewrite their menus to ensure that diners know the origins of the meat. The Scottish Executive has decided to introduce country-of-origin labelling to protect consumers and boost the Scotch beef industry. In many cases meat used in Scottish restaurants has been imported from countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Botswana and Namibia. – The Scotsman, 27 November
Hat maker to design five-star hotel
Philip Treacy, Ireland’s best-known milliner, has been appointed as interior designer for the G, a five-star hotel on the shores of Lough Atalia in Galway. Treacy is promising that the G will be as dramatic as his trademark zany hats. – Sunday Times (Irish edition), 28 November
Compass profits expected to remain flat
Analysts expect catering giant Compass Group to announce profits of about £660m when it releases its annual results on Tuesday, a figure virtually unchanged from a year ago. Compass rocked the market in September with a profits warning, blaming poor trading in Europe, weak margins, and the loss of school feeding contracts. – Sunday Telegraph (internet edition), 28 November
Call for tourism to be number-one industry in Scotland
Tom McCallum, a director of the Thompson Group, which has significant interests in property and tourism in Scotland, will tell the Scotland United tourism conference in Aviemore that the Tourism Framework for Action from the Scottish Executive should have tourism as its number-one industry. “Scottish tourism is a renewable industry. After the microchip plants have closed, the call centres moved to China and the oil runs out, tourism will still be there,” he said. – The Scotsman, 27 November
Pub groups report trading this week
Enterprise Inns is this week expected to post profits of £225.3m for the 12 months to 31 August - up from £173m a year ago, after the group weathered the impact of the wet summer and increases in energy costs. Mitchells & Butlers is due to release its results for the year to 31 August on Wednesday and is expected to show profits falling to £174.4m from £199m a year ago. The company, which owns the O’Neills and Harvester brands, has been driving sales growth by cutting prices. Friday sees results from Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries. A rise in profits to £77.2m is expected for the year to 31 September, up from £73.1m a year ago. – Scotland on Sunday, 28 November
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