IT'S hard enough trying to do a job or run a business in the heatwave, but spare a thought for seaweed salesman Iain McKellar.

The Bute-based supplier to leading chefs has said soaring temperatures this week have caused the algae to cook in the packages he sends out to clients.

Scotland's only commercial seaweed supplier said his brown seaweed was turning green in the bags.

He said: "Basically it has cooked. It's what brown seaweed does when you boil it, it turns green. I've had to stop sending my mail-ordered fresh seaweed by standard post because it's cooking in the bag before it reaches the customer.

"I left some packed kelp in my work unit only to see it cook in a matter of hours and I had to throw it all away."

Mr McKellar, 47, said in six years of running the business he had never encountered the problem. Up until this week, he has sent his seaweed first class and there have been no problems, but now he is having to pay extra to guarantee next-day delivery.

"This is the west coast of scotland, for goodness sake. It should be raining, not 26 degrees centigrade."