Jobs could be at risk at Scotland’s InchDairnie Whisky as it considers making positions redundant in response to the global slump in whisky demand.
The number of jobs potentially affected is unknown and the company declined to comment further at the time of writing.
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A spokesperson from the company said: “Due to a slowdown in the international demand for whisky, we have decided to start a process to consider potential redundancies across the business, in order to adapt to the current market conditions we find ourselves in, which represent the new normal for our company.”
InchDairnie Whisky presently employs 38 people at its site based in Fife.
The group produces the whisky brands RyeLaw, KinGlassie and Lauder’s, among others.
InchDairnie added “the structural changes will ensure we and our brands are set up for continued success for the future”.
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By GlobalDataIt comes at a time when Scotch whisky exports have seen pressure. According to figures from the Scotch Whisky Association published in February, global exports of Scotch declined in value terms in 2024.
Exports by value stood at £5.4bn ($6.7bn) last year, marking a 3.7% decrease from 2023.
Volumes meanwhile rose by 3.9% to 1.4bn bottles, reflecting “changing trends in global consumer preferences and challenging trading environment”.
Asia-Pacific was the largest regional market by value for Scotch exports, at £1.57bn, supported by 13.8% value growth in India and a 7.1% hike in Japan compared with 2023. The market made up 29% of global exports in 2024.
Despite coming out at the largest market in value terms, the region still saw a 12.4% decrease in exports value, while volumes increased 6% to 419m 70cl bottles. In China, Scotch exports value dropped a significant 31.5% to £161m.
Making up 27.5% of global Scotch exports last year, the EU held its position in terms of volume, with 488m bottles exported, but saw values decline 5.4% on 2023 to £1.5bn.
France, Spain, and Germany were still key markets for the spirit, with France seeing an 11.6% value decrease but a 1.9% volume increase.
The US saw Scotch exports value drop 3% on 2023, to £1.2bn, while volumes increased to 132m bottles, which demonstrated “the challenging economic conditions in the market, with inflation leading to consumers reluctant to spend on non-essential items”, the trade body said.
Figures from trade body The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) released in September also showed mixed results for whisky, which is the largest food or drink export from the UK in value terms.
Whisky export revenues increased 1% to £2.5bn but volumes fell 3.1%, the FDF said.
In May, InchDairnie announced it was merging its business with Glasgow-based MacDuff International. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The two businesses were consolidated that month into a single entity called InchDairnie Whisky Limited.
Founded in 2015 by Ian Palmer, InchDairnie launched its first whisky brand Ryelaw in 2023.
It has also been producing whisky for MacDuff since its distilling operations began, manufacturing the group’s brands Islay Mist and Lauder’s.
In a statement, the newly formed InchDairnie Whisky business said that bringing both businesses together under a single company would enable “efficiencies in external communications and operations”.
“The new structure also allows for greater strategic focus, aligning all teams behind a single long-term vision for InchDairnie Whisky Limited,” it added.
According to its website the newly formed InchDairnie Whisky sells to global markets including Canada, the US, UK, Belgium, Switzerland, Australia and Taiwan.
