The Scotch Pie Club has announced that Fife provost Jim Leishman will be joining the judging panel for the 14th World Scotch Pie Championship.
The competition has attracted a record entry this year with more than 100 butchers and bakers entering some 500 pies, pastries, sausage rolls, bridies and savouries into the competition, which, for the first time, features the new category of the best pie available for supporters to buy at a Scottish football match.
The judging will take place next Tuesday and the winner of the football pie will be announced at the winning football ground in December.
The winners of the World Scotch Pie Championships will be announced at the Carnegie Conference Centre in Dunfermline on Wednesday January 9.
Head judge Robert Ross said: ”Butchers and bakers across Scotland will have the opportunity to become recognised as producing the highest-quality savoury products with awards given to those producing the best products in each category.
”The winner of the Scotch Pie category will be declared as the world champion.”
Alan Stuart, competition founder, said: ”We are delighted to be launching the 14th World Scotch Pie Championships. We have a huge number of hard working butchers and bakers who deserve recognition for delivering great products day in and day out.
”I am looking forward to sampling some of the best products on the market today and to seeing who the judges pick out as having produced something that I know will be world class.”