Gordon & MacPhail receives UK’s CNPA approval for distillery

Speymalt Whisky Distributors, trading as Gordon & MacPhail, has received approval from UK’s Cairngorms National Park Authority (CNPA) for a new distillery.

With the approval, Gordon & MacPhail will be constructing a distillery, visitor centre, warehouse and associated infrastructure on the outskirts of Grantown-on-Spey.

CNPA planning committee convener Eleanor Mackintosh said: “I congratulate the applicant on a thorough and well-presented application. This is a major development for the area and this will be the first malt whisky distillery to be approved by the Cairngorms National Park Authority since it was established in 2003.

“The food and drink sector and the tourism industry are both extremely important to the National Park economy, often going hand in hand as is the case here.

“I fully support the officer’s recommendation to approve the application. It is an innovative building to house a business that will provide long term economic benefits.”

Once completed, the distillery will have the capacity to produce two million litres of spirit a year, as well as create employment opportunities in the region.

CNPA planning officer Katherine Donnachie said: “The main planning issue to consider in terms of a new distillery in the countryside is whether the principle of development in a rural location is acceptable.

“Scottish Planning Policy and our own National Park Partnership Plan and Local Development Plan all support sustainable development that helps to expand and vitalise the local economy while preserving important environmental and cultural assets and we are content that this is the case, with this application.”