Special honour for Jim Royan from Royal Northern Agrictulural Society
It’s been a long time a’coming but the Royal Northern Agricultural Society has finally got round to honouring retired Elgin butcher and currently Moray deputy Lord Lieutenant, Jim Royan, for his sterling service over many years to Scottish agriculture, the UK meat industry and his home area of Moray.
Mr Royan is one of four stalwarts whose contribution to the industry is being recognised with RNAS awards for outstanding service.
He will be presented with the main award for a public figure at the annual awards lunch in Aberdeen on November 5 for a multitude of roles, but primarily 17 years as a commissioner with the Meat and Livestock Commission and as launch chairman of Farm Assured Scotch Livestock, Europe’s first on-farm quality assurance scheme.
He will be joined at the top table by Kemnay Academy science teacher, Sandra Buchan Lyons, recipient of the Aberdeen and Northern Marts award for her work in enthusing her pupils about farming and food production, Laurencekirk haulage contractor, Doug Mitchell, who will receive the Argo family’s unsung hero award for his dedicated service for almost 50 years, and 22-year-old, Chloe Shorten, winner of the SRUC 35 years and under award for her commitment to the pig industry in her job managing the 1100 sows in Jim Innes’ pig unit at Dunscroft, Huntly.
Mr Royan said the award was an “incredible surprise” but an honour he greatly appreciated.
“It’s always a special honour to have your work recognised by your peers,” he said.
“My experience in the meat industry proved a stepping stone to wider public roles in industry and commerce and helped me appreciate even more the importance of agriculture to the wider economy.”
It’s difficult to know where to start when analysing Jim Royan’s long record of public service for which he is being recognised.
Along with former NFU Scotland president, John Ross, and well-known South-west Scotland sheep farmer, Keith Brooke, he was instrumental in establishing the first school young farmers club in Scotland at George Watson’s College in Edinburgh.
After a fast track apprenticeship with Brechin Butchers in Glasgow, where he was awarded the Scottish Federation of Meat Traders’ McNab Cup for top student in Scotland and medal for carcase judging, he joined his father in the family butcher’s business in Elgin which had the distinction of being the oldest established butcher’s shop in Scotland.
He was always innovative and keen to develop new techniques and products, eventually becoming a member of the exclusive Q Guild of Butchers.
As a member of Lower Speyside young farmers’ club, he made his mark in speechmaking and stockjudging competitions and was a member of the winning team in the national young farmers’ speechmaking finals in 1970 and later was invited twice to judge the supreme cattle championship at the Royal Smithfield Show in London and became the first UK butcher to be invited to judge at the Slavakto International Meat products competition in Utrecht, Holland.
He was first elected to the executive of the Scottish Federation of Meat Traders in 1968, and was one of the youngest ever presidents from 1971 to 1973.
At the same time, he was expanding his own meat business, taking over the tenancy of Elgin abattoir with farmer, Colin Taylor, in 1976, and later purchasing the abattoir and also meat wholesalers, Rhinds of Huntly, both of which were merged into a new company, Rhinds of Elgin, in partnership with Mr Taylor and John Rhind. The company opened the first new abattoir to be built in Scotland for 13 years in 1996.
As an MLC commissioner from 1978 to 1995, he played a lead role in establishing a new retail strategy for MLC and creating partnerships with centres of excellence in Holland, Germany, Switzerland and Denmark.
Outside agriculture, Jim has contributed with chair roles in NHS Grampian, governor of Robert Gordon’s University, serving on the boards of the Scottish Ambulance Service and Highlands and Islands Enterprise, chair of the Spirit of Speyside whisky festival, founding chair of the Moray Economic Partnership and from 2011 to 2016 chair of Hub North Scotland, a public/private partnership constructing schools and healthcare facilities. In 2019, he was elected chair of the board of Developing the Young Workforce for Moray.
Ask a busy man to do a job if you want to be sure it will be done well. Jim Royan’s record shows he is the epitome of that philosophy and a well-deserved recipient of the Royal Northern award.
