Make It Count with Maths Week Scotland
With maths being a crucial ingredient in every aspect of the food and drink industry, it’s great news that Maths Week Scotland is back for 2025.
The dedicated week of events and activity is on Monday 22 September to Sunday 28 September, and the theme this year is Wild Maths, looking at maths in the natural world.
What is Maths Week Scotland?
Maths Week Scotland is an annual celebration that highlights the importance of the subject in our everyday lives, and it's a perfect opportunity to demonstrate the exciting and unexpected ways it is woven into everyday roles in the industry.
It’s a Scottish Government initiative to make Scotland a maths-positive nation, demonstrating to people of all ages and backgrounds that maths is everywhere, not just in a classroom.
Project co-ordinator Emma Koubayssi said: “Maths Week Scotland is a fantastic platform for Ambassadors to demonstrate the vital - and often surprising - role that maths plays in our industry.
“By showing how we use numbers in everything from recipe development to business management, we can help make maths feel relevant, accessible and exciting to young people.”
How Food & Drink Ambassadors can get involved
Your role as a Scottish Food & Drink Ambassador is perfectly aligned with the goals of Maths Week Scotland.
By participating, you can help challenge stereotypes and show young people how maths can be a creative and exciting subject that leads to a rewarding career. Here are some ideas on how you can get involved:
Share your story: create a blog post, a social media campaign or a short video explaining how you use maths in your day-to-day job. Discuss everything from measuring ingredients for a new recipe to calculating profit margins and managing supply chain logistics.
Engage with schools: visit a local school to give a talk or run a hands-on workshop that demonstrates the practical application of maths in the food and drink industry. You could lead a baking activity that involves calculating ratios or a tasting session that uses data analysis to understand consumer preferences.
Host an event: organise your own maths-themed event at your workplace. This could be a workshop on the geometry of packaging or an escape room challenge based on inventory management and financial forecasting. If you already have an event planned, let the organisers know at info@mathsweek.scot and they will add it to the programme of events.
Collaborate with others: team up with other Food & Drink Ambassadors or businesses to create a joint initiative that showcases the industry's collective use of maths. A call for ideas is now open, so whether you have the kernel of a great idea or a full event planned organisers want to hear from you – and they can help to support you in finding a venue, collaborators, funding and promotion - whatever you need to make your event a success.
By taking part, you'll not only inspire the next generation of food and drink professionals but also help create a more maths-positive culture in Scotland. To find out more, and access the event guidance and promotional logos & posters, visit the official Maths Week Scotland website.