By Kristy Dorsey

Sales of Mackie’s ice cream have increased by a quarter during the last eight months as consumers seek out “affordable treats” during the varying levels of lockdown restrictions.

Stuart Common, sales director of the family-owned company, said the dominant retail business of supplying supermarkets has performed well since the start of the new financial year on June 1. This has offset a 50 per cent decline in wholesale to suppliers to the restaurant and catering trade, which accounted for just a tenth of overall sales prior to the pandemic.

In addition to the 25% rise in ice cream revenues, sales of Mackie’s premium chocolate bars are up 10% in the current financial year.

“With the change in shopping patterns, and with many people stuck at home, what we are finding is that people are seeking out affordable treats, and ice cream has always been that sort of little pick-me-up,” Mr Common said.

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His comments came as the company, based on the fourth-generation Westertown Farm in Aberdeenshire, posted higher profits for the full year to the end of May 2020. This was despite the impact of the initial lockdown measures in March of last year, which saw foodservice accounts grind to a halt and forced the closure of Mackie’s 19.2 ice cream parlour in Aberdeen.

It also triggered an initial fall in demand for take-home tubs of ice cream, as consumers rushed to stock up on staple foods. However, the situation “quickly recovered” as it became apparent that essentials would not run out, with retail sales in April and May actually experiencing an uplift.

Revenues for the year were broadly flat at £16.7 million, but operating profit rose by 61% largely because of a 12% decline in costs linked to long-term contracts on ingredients. Pre-tax profits came in at nearly £3.5m, up from £2.2m a year earlier.

Managing director Mac Mackie, one of three sibling owners of the business, said: “These stellar results are made all the more impressive when we consider that we were ‘competing’ against the previous financial year, which accounted for the record heatwave summer of 2018.

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“We broke all our own records then – and thought it would be very difficult to match that in the following year.”

The company is in the process of building a new £4.5m low-carbon refrigeration system that will use ammonia powered by a biomass boiler to replace the gas currently used to run its production and cold store freezers.

Due to be completed in the next few months, the system will be the first of its kind in Scotland and is expected to reduce the company’s energy use by up to 80%. The business, which includes a farm and dairy herd, is already carbon positive thanks in part to its four wind turbines and a 10-acre solar farm.

Employee numbers rose from 83 to 91 as Mackie’s added 10 new members of staff to keep up with increased demand for its ice cream, which is Scotland’s top-seller in the premium category. Additional production staff were also needed to meet social distancing requirements as shift patterns moved to working for longer hours in smaller groups.

“To see revenue increase, by even a small margin, is a credit to everyone in our team,” Mr Mackie said. “We’ve had to be fleet of foot to be able to keep working, at home and remotely, while creating and incorporating the many new safety procedures required.”