Ian Macleod Distillers has revealed it cut production at two distilleries by 30% due to the muted outlook for Scotch.
In a filing with Companies House, the UK business register, the company said it had reduced annual production at its Glengoyne and Rosebank sites “on account of the lower forward-demand outlook”.
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The distiller said annual production at its Tamdhu site “remained at recent output levels” due to the timing of “significant onsite engineering works” in recent years.
It added: “The broader trend is that Tamdhu’s output profile will mirror that of the other two distilleries.”
The comments came alongside the release of Ian Macleod Distillers’ accounts for the year to the end of September 2025.
Turnover stood at £118m ($156.3m), down from £128.3m a year earlier.
Operating profit dropped from £22.3m to £16.8m, while profit attributable to members of the company more than halved from £11.6m to £5.5m.
Ian Macleod Distillers said “cased turnover grew modestly” but turnover from bulk whisky “continued to reduce at a significant, double-digit rate”.
“Cased turnover demand for group products in Europe and Asia continued to decline whilst in the United Kingdom the reduction was mild. Positively, cased turnover grew in North America,” the company reported.
Ian Macleod Distillers said its bulk business was hit by “ongoing lower demand” from UK-based industry buyers for single casks, young grain and older blended malt whisky”.
It added: “These effects were experienced by most competitor businesses across the sector.”
The group’s principal single malt brands are Glengoyne, Smokehead, Tamdhu and Rosebank. It also sells blended Scotch and gin brand Edinburgh Gin. Outside its own brands, the distiller supplies secondary and private-label cased products.
Scotch whisky producers have faced pressure on exports in recent quarters. In 2025, the value of exports dipped 0.6% but fell 4.3% in volume terms, according to data from The Scotch Whisky Association. Scotch exports were valued at £5.36bn, with the equivalent of 1.3bn bottles sold.
Volumes to the US dropped more than 9%, hit by US tariffs on UK exports. The value of sales to the US decreased 4% to £933m.
Data released on Friday (26 June) by The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) showed the UK’s drinks exports rose in volume terms in the first quarter of the year amid increasing shipments of whisky and gin.
Exports of whisky, the UK’s best-selling food or drink export, rose 5.4% in volume terms, although the value of shipments dipped 1.1% to £1.2bn ($1.58bn). Scotch accounts for the bulk of the UK’s whisky exports but the data also covers English and Welsh whiskies.
