Our Story
1938
The Mackay factory was originally a carrot processing facility in Carnoustie, Eastern Scotland and in 1938 the Mackay brothers converted the site into a jam-making facility sourcing berries from the bountiful fields surrounding them and selling them locally.
1970
The Mackay brothers sold to United Biscuits who converted the factory into the producer for, the jam in the middle of the famous, Jam Ring biscuit.
Les Nicholson, an ex-employee from Keiller of Dundee started work at Mackays – bringing his expertise with him.
1995
Paul Grant having worked for United Biscuits since he was 19, seized the opportunity to build a Scottish Marmalade and Jam brand.
Paul saw the potential in the local produce and the heritage of Dundee Marmalade. A year later in 1996, Paul launched the first Mackays jar into the Canadian Market.
1997
Mackays launched Grant’s of Dundee into Tesco’s in Scotland.
2000
Wanting to retain the history associated with the factory the branding changed from Grants of Dundee returning to the original name, Mackays, as we know it today.
2008
Mackays moved from the factory in Carnoustie to a state-of-the-art facility in Arbroath, where Princess Anne came to open the new premises.
The factory in Carnoustie was 15,000 square feet with 6 pans the new premises in Arbroath was 80,000 square feet with 22 pans.
2011
Martin Grant took over as Managing Director, having worked for the business since 2002. Driving the business forward from £8.5 million to a £17 million business.
2019
Expansion of distribution and co-packing facilities were made to meet worldwide customer demand with Mackays brand becoming the 3rd largest Preserve brand in the UK market.
2021
State-of-the-art manufacturing and packaging investments were made to open opportunities in the foodservice sector.
From the beginning to now we have remained true to our values by making all our products the authentic way in small batches and copper pans.
