FARMING SCOTLAND MAGAZINE (May - June Issue 2025)

Proud to support Scottish farming, and agriculture throughout the five nations

Tuathanachas Alba

magazine

Royal Highland Show Preview Scottish Game Fair BeefTech ’25 Open Farm Sunday In Focus British Friesians The Perfect Regen Cow

New to the Market McHales F5 Fixed Chamber baler range

£3.75

Drones - Smarter Farming from the sky from Nightmaster

June 2025

Articles Hydrogen storage for tractors Women leaders in the rural economy How to profit from alternative land use Scottish Country Life Outdoor learning Travel Scotland Carnoustie capers! plus

Ffermio Cymru • Northern Isles Beatha an Eilean • Book Serial Farmhouse Kitchen • Women in Agriculture including our regular news areas and columns

contents

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June 2025

82

34

Features

Scottish Country Life

16 28 31 72

92

Scottish Game Fair Open Farm Sunday Royal Highland Show BeefTech ’25

Articles 20 30 90

Hydrogen storage for tractors Women leaders in the rural economy How to profit from alternative land use

Ffermio Cymru 18

News from Wales

New to Market 24

McHale’s new F5 Fixed Chamber baler range 106 Drones-Smarter farming from the sky from Nightmaster

In Focus 74

British Friesians - The perfect regan cow

Northern Isles 88

News from Orkney & Shetland

All Editorial & PR enquiries EDITOR Athole Murray Fleming Tel. 01738 639747 E-mail: mail@farmingscotlandmagazine.com

Outdoor learning

Book Serial 102 Part 3: Under the Radiant Hill

93 85

Sheep

91

Land & Property

94

Forestry

96

Estate

114 Finance 116 Machinery

Travel Scotland

128 Events

104 Carnoustie capers!

Farmhouse Kitchen 108 Scottish Berry Pavlova

Beatha an Eilean 112 Life on the islands

Women in Agriculture 107 Women and Food Awards in Amsterdam

News Areas

Columns 6

Editor’s Bit

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NFU Scotland

13

RSABI

15

Scotland the Brand

19

Farm Advisory Service

23

Scottish Government

77

Quality Meat Scotland

84

The Vet

6

Arable

87

National Sheep Association

14

Food & Drink

95

Scottish Forestry

21

Environment

100 Crofting

22

Renewables

101 Conservation Matters

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Science & Technology

130 People on the move

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Livestock

130 Book Review

All Advertising & Editorial enquiries ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Athole Murray Fleming Tel. 01738 639747 E-mail: mail@farmingscotlandmagazine.com

PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Christina Fleming Email: christina@atholedesign.com

106 Subscription 113 Order your personal copy www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com

Next Issue Out in July 2025. Featuring: Shooting Scotland Magazine, Telehandlers, Trailers, Perth Show, Moy Country Fair and so much more.

See our website for details. farmingscotlandmagazine.com

Advertising & Editorial Enquiries Call 01738 639747 or email mail@farmingscotlandmagazine.com

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COPYRIGHT This publication has been produced and published by ATHOLE DESIGN & PUBLISHING LTD who are the copyright owners. No reproduction, copying, image scanning, storing or recording of any part of this publication without the permission of ATHOLE DESIGN & PUBLISHING LTD. Contents disclaimer: FARMING SCOTLAND MAGAZINE is not responsible for any factual inaccuracies within press information supplied to us. Any concerns regarding such matters should be directed to the supplier of the materials.

FARMING SCOTLAND MAGAZINE is designed, produced and published by Athole Design & Publishing Ltd., Tolastadh, 18 Corsie Drive, Kinnoull, Perth, Scotland PH2 7BU. Tel. 01738 639747 est 1994

ISSN: 2041–918X

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arable editor's bit Suspicious mind?

Is getting a trade deal with the USA going to be a good deal for our farmers?

My inner most thoughts tell me no it won’t.

I have no evidence to back up my suspicion that the UK Government is about to sell our farmers and quality produce down the river, but it is there, nagging away none the less.

Donald Trump thinks that everything is just a big game, to him, everything is about beating your opponent for the best deal possible no matter what.

And if a little humiliation is included too, then all the sweeter to feed his massive ego.

I watched Starmer’s fawning at the president’s feet a few months ago, and the feeling was one of sad revulsion on how low he appeared to sink in front of the cameras.

Has the UK really come to this?

Yes it has, and Brexit was the act of jingoistic lies and stupidity that paved that path to our meekness before the worlds media.

A deal with the Devil is perhaps in the pipeline, and with the Labour Government basically lying about what they stand for before and after the election, can we seriously trust them to protect our food quality standards and farmed produce?

I don’t!

I could also go on about the NHS and the private sector creeping in, though in Scotland not so much yet.

Maybe it is just my suspicious mind?

Slàinte, Athole.

New study to identify nutritionally superior and yieldstable oat varieties The James Hutton Institute has been awarded £100,000 from the Novo Nordisk Foundation for a three-year project, led by the Innovation Centre for Organic Agriculture in Denmark and working in collaboration with Nordic Genebank (NordGen) and Aarhus University in Denmark, to identify nutritionally superior and yield-stable oat varieties through a combination of experimental and on-farm field trials across a range of diverse environments and organic management systems.

Sustainable production of healthy food for a growing human population is an escalating global challenge.

Oat, the third most popular cereal crop grown in the UK after wheat and barley, is a uniquely healthy cereal crop, rich in protein, minerals and fibre, especially β-glucan, which is associated with a reduction in cholesterol levels and post-meal glycaemic responses.

The Hutton is a world leading research institute addressing the issue of global food security by finding scientific solutions for the sustainable management of land and natural resources and the demands for improved agricultural productivity and crop resilience.

Oat is particularly well suited to organic production in northern Europe due to its robustness and adaptability. It requires low inputs thanks to its low demand for nitrogen, and has low susceptibility to diseases, and can cope effectively against weeds.

Dr Joanne Russell, the Hutton’s lead on this study explains more. “The project brings together experts in

plant genetics, agronomy, and mathematics to harness the unique properties of oat, with its low carbon footprint and significant nutritional and health benefits. The key issue for oat producers is the lack of stability in year-to-year supply and quality, largely due to seasonal

fluctuations in environmental factors. We will focus on the need to develop robust organicready oat cultivars specifically tailored to sustainable organic production and address some of the emerging challenges in food and health security to help secure food production.”

Early protection needed to mitigate net blotch pressure in spring barley Spring barley growers may need to apply an early fungicide spray to counter increased pressure from net blotch. That is according to ProCam agronomist Alistair Gordon who warns that early drilled crops and those using untreated or farm saved seed will

be at a higher than usual risk of infection.

“Net blotch has rapidly become one of the hardest diseases to control in spring barley, not least because crops can easily become infected either via seedborne or trashborne

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arable sources of inoculum,” Alistair explains.

“The added complication of disease resistance – which has reduced the efficacy of several fungicide active ingredients – means it’s no longer possible to cure infections once they have taken hold. Prevention is therefore crucial to ensure crops remain as clean as possible for as long as possible.”

Among the main methods for mitigating net blotch pressure is to grow a resistant variety, or applying an appropriate seed treatment.

“Unfortunately, some spring seed, especially that which has been farm-saved, won’t have been treated and, if already infected or not naturally resistant, could prove to be a ticking timebomb later in the season. And, with seed treatments unlikely to offer full control, monitoring all crops during their early growth stages will be even more important this year.”

Alistair’s advice is therefore to apply an early season fungicide treatment to provide crops with an extra layer of disease protection before infections explode.

“In a ‘normal’ year, or in a low disease pressure scenario, it might be feasible to wait until the traditional T1 timing to apply a first fungicide treatment,” Alistair says. “Unfortunately, that approach won’t cut the mustard this year as we’re already hearing reports that a significant volume of seed has been confirmed to have very high levels of net blotch. Where untreated seed has been drilled, or where drilling was brought forward to make the most of the recent dry conditions, the risk will be even greater.

“The advice this year is therefore to bring crop protection plans forward by applying a suitable fungicide treatment as soon as possible.”

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arable Graze what you sow: Livestock in arable systems Incorporating livestock into arable rotations can be a real game-changer for both soil health and farm productivity – and visitors to this year’s Cereals Event will have access to the latest technical and practical advice on how to do just that.

The rise of regenerative farming over recent years has led to an uptick in farmers reverting to more traditional practices, which saw many farm businesses operate as mixed enterprises. This approach focuses on working with nature to restore soil health, improve biodiversity, and reduce the use of synthetic inputs – with livestock playing a key role in the system.

Among the benefits of incorporating livestock within the rotation is that manure naturally fertilises the soil, helping it retain moisture and improving structure.

Additionally, grazing helps control weeds and pests without the need for chemicals – big wins for both the environment and the farmer’s bottom line.

BASE-UK will be delving into this topic in its Regen Conference at this year’s Cereals Event (11-12 June 2025).

Sessions include enterprise stacking and how to make the most out of every field – including livestock integration.

BASE-UK member Sebastian Richardson says: “Livestock

integration into arable rotations is a key part of a regenerative farming system. BASE-UK members have a wealth of experience in implementing this on farms across the country, so we

encourage all visitors interested in livestock integration to come along to the ‘enterprise stacking’ session to hear firsthand some of the benefits of ‘grazing what you sow’.”

New wheat wild relative genome research unlocks potential for crop improvement Scientists have successfully mapped the genome sequence of Aegilops mutica, a wild relative of wheat, shedding light on its genetic diversity and potential use in breeding programmes.

Researchers at the University of Nottingham assembled a chromosome-level haplotype-

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resolved genome sequence of Aegilops mutica. The research has been published in Scientific Data and contributes to a growing body of research aimed at safeguarding global wheat production in the face of climate change and emerging plant diseases.

The study was led by Dr Surbhi Grewal, Assistant Professor in the School of Biosciences and conducted as part of the Nottingham Wheat Research Centre’s (WRC) ongoing prebreeding programme.

The breeding programme aims to introduce beneficial

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genetic diversity from wild species into cultivated wheat varieties. By using specialist sequencing techniques, Dr Grewal, along with her colleagues at the University of Nottingham and collaborators at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and Earlham Institute, have

arable produced a high-quality fullyannotated genome assembly and valuable insights into the genetic architecture of Aegilops mutica, a species known for its adaptability to challenging environmental conditions.

Dr Grewal said: “This highresolution genome assembly represents a significant step forward in our ability to utilise wild relatives for wheat improvement. With traits such as wheat rust resistance, as demonstrated in our past studies, present in Aegilops mutica, this resource opens new possibilities for enhancing the resilience of modern wheat.”

FARMING SCOTLAND MAGAZINE Next issue out July 2025 Subscription page 113

Eurostar Foods launches Green Farm Collective RE:GEN flour line The four farmer founders of The Green Farm Collective (TGFC) have teamed up with Eurostar Commodities to develop a line of flours produced using regenerative farming practices.

RISE RE:GEN Flour has the strapline Farmed with Nature and its launch underpins the intent of TGFC, to encourage the food industry to value sustainable farming both financially and ethically.

The farmers behind TGFC, Jake Freestone, Angus Gowthorpe, Michael Kavanagh and Tim Parton, formed the regenerative farming community four years ago to support other growers in their regenerative practices, promising to create new and lucrative end markets for TGFC members.

“The Eurostar team has embraced the importance of the farming approach that our members practice centred around soil health, reduced environmental impact and improving farmland biodiversity,” says Jake Freestone.

“They also recognise that the way we farm should be rewarded and we couldn’t have asked for more. They have developed an exclusive partnership and a bespoke brand of TGFC flours which they sell to their influential

customers for pizza, bread and other wheat-based foods, and also pay us a fair and reflective price for our crops. It really is a true and respectful partnership and one that demonstrates Eurostar’s progressive leadership in the food supply chain.”

Eurostar Commodities is a family-run importer and supplier of ingredients to manufacturers, wholesalers, foodservice, retailers, and consumers across the UK, Ireland, northern Europe, the Middle East, and Iceland.

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The launch of the RISE range fits a growing interest from their customers for environmentally conscious ingredients.

“The market for regeneratively farmed flours is growing because consumer demand is growing, so it is a proud moment for our business to partner on such an important range,” says Diane Crabtree, Sales Manager at Eurostar.

The flour is sold in 16kg paper sacks as Strong or All Purpose Flour.

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arable 3 steps to optimise weed control in maize As soils warm, growers will soon be drilling the 2025 forage maize crop. With good weed control key to bumper yields, Certis Belchim’s technical account manager David Peach outlines three steps to getting it just right this season Step 1 – Identify targets and take action early The six weeks post crop emergence are critical to forage maize crop performance, as plants are so sensitive to competition from weeds for water and nutrients.

If left unchecked during this period, yield losses can reach 50%.

This makes a pre-emergence herbicide important, as it holds weeds back and limits the impact of any delay in post-emergence spraying.

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It also sensitises target weeds and improves efficacy of follow up sprays.

The most damaging species include polygonums such as knotgrass, black nightshade, mayweed, orache and fat-hen.

Blackgrass and annual meadow grass are also problematic in some regions.

It’s important to know which species are present, as this can have a bearing on which herbicides you choose once the crop is in the ground.

Plenty of growers are planting on their own land, so will have an idea about field history, but there is still a lot of maize grown by contractors on rented land.

This presents its own challenge in knowing what species are there and, in

such situations, the case for a pre-emergence spray is strengthened.

A holding spray can buy you a bit of time early on, so you can see what is left behind, then you can deal with what’s there before any difficult weeds get away.

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Step 2 – Design your herbicide programme Either straight pendimethalin or Wing-P (pendimethalin + dimethenamid P) pre-emergence are solid, broad-spectrum foundations to a maize weed control programme.

Following your preemergence spray, it’s then crucial to be walking the crop regularly and see what weeds come through.

You are inevitably going to have some broad-leaved weeds and, in some situations, growers will need a herbicide mix with activity on grassweeds.

A three-way mix of Osorno (mesotrione), Fornet 6 OD (nicosulfuron) and Diva (pyridate) covers all bases, with the three actives complimenting each other well.

Mesotrione boosts residual control, nicosulfuron is effective on grassweeds and a range of broad-leaved weeds, and Diva offers broad-spectrum contact activity.

In Certis Belchim trials, pyridate in a three-way mix always improves control of a wide range of competitive weeds, compared to mesotrione and nicosulfuron alone, particularly cranesbill, mayweed, and fat hen.

The company’s work has also shown that pyridate is a safer addition to the tank than dicamba, which when applied in hot conditions can check the crop significantly.

Finally, apply herbicide mixtures when weeds are small to get the best control. In most scenarios, you only get one postemergence hit, so don’t ask too much of the chemistry.

Step 3 – Adapt to the season Bear in mind that pendimethalin is relatively insoluble, so if you are faced with low soil moisture, it might be worth delaying your first spray.

Growers have the option of going early post-emergence, adding a contact herbicide like Diva to a residual like pendimethalin to take out any emerged weeds. This mix needs to be applied from the two true leaf stage of the crop.

If taking this approach, it is best to follow with an Osorno + Fornet 6 OD + Diva mix where you have broad-leaved weeds and grassweeds, or just Osorno + Diva where broad-leaved weeds are the only target.

When using any mesotrione product like Osorno, make sure you are aware of the following crop restrictions in both autumn and spring after the season of application. More information can be found on the product label.

New Tong Grading Line transforms post-harvest operations for Hugh Crane Ltd Norfolk-based family farming business, Hugh Crane Ltd, has significantly enhanced its grading operations following the installation of a new Tong grading line featuring a Downs CropVision optical sorter. The investment has led to a dramatic increase in throughput while significantly reducing labour requirements, reinforcing Hugh Crane Ltd’s

commitment to efficiency and innovation in crop handling.

Prior to the installation, grading into store required 10 to 12 workers on the grading line.

With the new system, even in the most challenging conditions, a maximum of just two people are required, marking substantial labour-saving. Similarly, when grading out of store, the new line

NFU Scotland

arable

Backing farmers means backing Scotland’s future

Andrew Connon, President, NFU Scotland

As I begin my term as NFU Scotland President, I’ve already seen the sheer resilience, innovation and determination that define our farming and crofting communities.

Yes, the sector faces challenges, but I believe, firmly, that with the right support, the future of Scottish agriculture can be both profitable and sustainable.

Recent figures show farm incomes have dipped significantly for some sectors in the 2023/24 accounting year, driven by soaring input costs and market volatility. On top of this, tax changes proposed by the UK Government risk adding further pressure to our already stretched businesses.

That’s why I’ve written to the Chancellor, calling for a rethink. We’ve asked for sensible changes - delaying the National Insurance rise for agri-employers, pausing the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, rethinking

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vehicle tax changes for working pickups, and reconsidering inheritance tax proposals that could force family farms to fragment.

Now, we may not win every argument. But that won’t stop us putting forward clear, constructive solutions - and pushing relentlessly for decisions that back food producers, protect rural jobs and build a better future for the next generation.

Because here’s what I know: there’s huge pride in this profession. I see it in the young people stepping up, in the fresh thinking taking root on farms, and in the growing sense that farming offers a future full of purpose and opportunity.

That’s why I’d encourage anyone involved in farming whether you’ve been in it for 40 years or are just starting out - to get involved with NFU Scotland. Together, we’re stronger, and we’ll continue to make the case for a thriving Scottish agriculture sector.

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arable can now run without the need for manual picking, whereas previously, two or three staff members were necessary.

Featuring a 9.4m long heavy-duty Tong hopper with 2.5m inclined section at the infeed, the new grading line has seen the average throughput double from 25-30 tons per hour to an impressive 50 tons per hour. With the line capable of even higher throughputs, the success of the new installation has led to Hugh Crane Ltd placing an order for a new fourrow harvester to keep pace with the increased processing capacity. ]George Crane of Hugh Crane Ltd expressed his satisfaction with the new system, stating: “The benefits of the new Tong grading line and Downs CropVision sorter are very clear.

The technology has transformed our grading process, making it

a lot more efficient and costeffective.”

The new grading line feature Tong’s industry-leading EasyClean separator for unrivalled crop cleaning in all conditions, alongside Tong’s EasyGrade screen modules for reliable size grading and a series of Tong EasyFill box fillers, ensuring gentle box filling. Geroge explained, “We are delighted with how our new set-up is working.

Whilst the optical sorting element has made a huge difference in the level of sorting we can achieve without picking-off staff, the Tong EasyClean is a key component of the system which has proved vital in getting the best out of the optical sorter. The cleaning capabilities of the EasyClean ensure that the crop is cleaned and well-prepared for passing through the optical sorting system effectively, helping to maximise the accuracy and efficiency of the sorting process.”

“A key factor in selecting the Downs CropVision optical sorter

was its minimal drop height as well as the optical sorter’s advanced debris removal and quality-sorting capability,” said George. “With the capacity to not only remove stones, soil and waste, but also accurately detect and remove defects including greens, mishapes and growth cracks, whilst separating the potato and soil waste, we have been able to run the new Tong line throughout the out-of-store grading season with no pickingoff staff required in most cases.

During harvest, only two people were needed even in the mostchallenging conditions. The advanced technology and touchscreen controls of the Tong

system means that it seamlessly accommodates both potato and onion crops with only simple grading screen changes required, which has really enhanced our operational flexibility.”

“It has been a pleasure working with George and his team at Hugh Crane Ltd to design and deliver a state-of-the-art potato and onion grading facility that is already making a significant impact,” added Nick Woodcock, Sales Manager at Tong Engineering.

“The company’s commitment to investing in advanced handling technology highlights their focus on maximizing efficiency and maintaining the highest quality standards in crop processing.”

New living mulches guide helps boost resilience and soil health Farmers looking to enhance soil health, increase resilience, and improve sustainability now have a powerful resource at their fingertips.

The newly released Living Mulches Technical Guide provides clear, practical advice on implementing living mulch strategies that deliver tangible benefits across farms of all sizes.

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Co-created in response to farmers’ questions, the free-toaccess guide builds on four years of research conducted through an Innovative Farmers Field Lab, further studies by the Organic Research Centre, and insights from UK farmers who have trialled living mulches. It is designed to offer clarity and step-by-step guidance on effectively adopting this innovative practice.

arable

When managed correctly, living mulches improve soil structure and fertility, reduce runoff and erosion, and enhance nitrogen availability for future crops. They also boost in-field biodiversity, suppress annual weed populations, and lower production costs. However, without proper management, living mulches can also present challenges, including competition with crops, potential yield penalties, and increased perennial weed burdens.

Structured around the farming year, the guide focuses on the living mulch journey season by season - from spring establishment and summer field management, to harvest and autumn transition into a fully living mulch system, and concluding with winter mulch management.

Each seasonal chapter clearly outlines the actions required, important considerations and potential risks, providing a practical, time-based roadmap to help farmers plan, adapt and trial the system at their own pace.

While there are multiple ways to integrate living mulches, this guide focuses on a lowinput system with alternative strategies and additional insights are provided for those working within conventional farming systems.

Matt Smee, Head of Agricology at the Organic Research Centre, says that living mulches are a great tool for farmers seeking sustainable and efficient farming practices.

Along with the guide, Agricology has also created an online learning journey, the Living Mulch Hub, which collates resources, research papers, tools and reports on living mulches.

To access the free online learning journey and the full Living Mulches Technical Guide, visit www.agricology. co.uk/resource/living-mulchestechnical-guide/

New Farmers’ Lotto Launched to Support RSABI’s Work A Farmers’ Lotto has been launched by agricultural charity, RSABI, to help raise funds to support the vital emotional, practical and financial services it provides to the Scottish agricultural community.

The year ahead is expected to be the charity’s busiest yet for providing services such as free counselling to farmers and others in the agricultural community who are struggling with their mental health.

As demand for RSABI’s services continues to grow, the Lotto will generate a vital new income stream to help cover the rising costs of its essential services. As well as supporting the charity’s 24-hour Helpline and other emotional support services, the funds raised will help RSABI continue to offer financial assistance to those who are unable to work due to age, accident, ill-health, or disability.

The Farmers’ Lotto will join a raft of new fundraising opportunities launched by the charity this year, including two challenge events: the Kelpies Challenge and Walk the Loch at Loch Leven as well as its rebranded supporters’ scheme, Friends of RSABI. The charity is working with an expert third party provider Gatherwell and is also a member of The

Lotteries Council ensuring the lotto is compliant and trusted.

Online tickets cost £1 a week to be in with the chance of winning a jackpot of £25,000, as well as other prizes of £2,00, £250 and £25.

Pauline Macmillan, Head of Fundraising at RSABI, said: “We are always looking for innovative ways to fundraise and are pleased

to have found a way which enables those playing to benefit, as well as helping to fund the lifeline services we are known for.”

For more information on the RSABI Farmers Lotto or to purchase tickets visit www.farmerslotto.co.uk Tickets must be purchased at least 24 hours before the draw, but players can set up a direct debit for weekly play.

RSABI provides 24/7 confidential support for farmers through their helpline (0808 1234 555) or webchat at www.rsabi.org.uk.

food & drink Food and Agriculture Stakeholder Taskforce meets with Scottish Government The food supply chain and agriculture stakeholder group, FAST, met with Scottish Government recently to discuss how to best implement agricultural support.

Members of FAST, who were invited as a critical stakeholder group, represent organisations from across the sector, including tenant farmers, young farmers, landowners, crop growers, and the meat supply chain, and many of the representatives in the room are also farmers or closely linked to grass roots agriculture.

“The aim of the meeting was to understand both sides of the story and how we enable and accelerate co-development and greater engagement,” explained Chair of FAST, Neil Wilson. “It was an opportunity to see how the policy makers are looking to practically deliver the reforms and support payments, and for FAST to feedback to policy advisers on the impact this will have on those on the ground and potential pitfalls and opportunities.

“Although we are very aware it will be Ministers who have the final say in the implementation of the policy, it was good to have constructive discussion with their advisers about the critical need for co-design for it to work effectively on the ground and with some refreshing What If? thinking about how to reduce the administration and paperwork on both sides.”

The meeting was held with then-Deputy Director for Agriculture and Land Transitions, Mandy Callaghan, as well as the Agricultural Reform Programme (ARP) official with responsibility for stakeholder engagement. Mandy was the Senior Responsible Officer for the Programme and who had been heavily involved in its development.

Ms Callaghan recognised the need to use the expertise and 14

knowledge of those managing the land to design the future model and ongoing improvements, and for requirements for support payments to be data and evidence driven. She also explained the need to integrate environmental remits into the agricultural policy to meet the nation’s targets set for 2030.

With the UK now out of the EU, and as agricultural support competes with other draws on Scottish Government funding from the same pot, including education and healthcare, Mr Wilson said it was important

that the proposed funding meets the Government’s own goals as well as delivering for the agricultural supply chain to safeguard support into the future: “The funding needs to be seen to be an investment into the industry. This investment is key for the future of Scotland’s food production, food security and a thriving rural economy, and for the confidence of those in the sector to commit their own money and long-term vision.

It cannot risk being changed with the new administration.

We want to continue to work with civil servants and ministers to ensure the policy is fit for purpose for both sides, and to support Scottish Government with joined up thinking, processes and communication.

“We do need to accelerate the process though and see Scottish Government be more proactive in co-design and engagement rather than reactive,” added Mr Wilson. “We sincerely hope that the work to date from Ms Callaghan and her refreshing perspective will be carried forward by her replacement.”

2025 Farm Shop & Deli Retailer Awards Winners Unveiled In April, the highly anticipated winners of the 2025 Farm Shop & Deli Retailer Awards were announced, and the prestigious title of Retailer of the Year has been awarded to Delilah Fine Foods Ltd in Nottingham! In a remarkable evening at the annual Farm Shop & Deli Show held at the NEC Birmingham, Delilah Fine Foods not only claimed the top honour but also took home the award for Delicatessen of the Year and was recognized as the Midlands Regional Winner.

The Awards, presented in partnership with The Grocer and championed by Fieldfare, showcased an impressive lineup of nine category winners, six regional champions, and a highly coveted Newcomer of the Year award. An enthusiastic audience of finalists, visitors, and exhibitors cheered as Delilah Fine Foods Ltd triumphed over fierce competition from across the UK and Northern Ireland.

In addition to Delilah Fine Foods Ltd’s accolades, we celebrate Field to Fork from Henley-In-Arden, Warwickshire, as our 2025 Newcomer of the

Year. This category was fiercely competitive, with Kale & Corn from Belper, Derbyshire, and Must Be Crackers! Cheesemongers from Dunfermline, Scotland, receiving Highly Commended certificates.

Congratulations to all our deserving winners! A complete list of winners and Highly Commended recipients is included at the end of this release.

About the Judging Process The awards process involved a rigorous evaluation by a panel of leading experts who meticulously

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reviewed entries online before convening in November to shortlist contenders. Secret visits during January and February allowed judges to assess nominees firsthand, culminating in the selection of this year’s winners.

Celebrating Excellence in Independent Retail The coveted accolades celebrate the best specialist independent retailers with judges recognising retailers’ achievements in the independent sector.

Nigel Barden, Chairman

food & drink of Judges and Food and Drink Journalist and Broadcaster, says: “Despite it being a cautious retail market, it’s still been another great year for the Farm Shop & Deli Awards and we are grateful for the quality of the entries and gratified that busy retailers still found time to take part. The quality of our judging panel certainly helps draw businesses in and I was delighted to welcome new judges from the Farm Retail Association. Twenty five extra visits were made to made to ensure there was no doubt as to who our winners were to be, and this included putting some of our online retailers through their paces. Alongside category winners, we handed out awards

for regions, Best Newcomer and Highly Commended, for the very close calls.

Our Retailer of the Year, Delilah Fine Foods of Nottingham, has been an overnight success of 20 years and the brilliant Sangita Tryner continues to motivate her team to run an excitingly ground breaking deli.

The Best Newcomer, Field to Fork Farm Shop, in Henley-inArden, has shown the success of converting a car salesroom into an urban farm shop, that’s literally at the heart of the community.

It’s been a privilege to see the hard graft and endeavour of all these talented retailers being acknowledged.”

Farm Shop & Deli Awards 2025 Full list of category and regional winners and highly commended finalists Best Retailer: Butcher: Perrys of Eccleshall Ltd, Stafford

Best Retailer: Delicatessen, Midlands regional winner and overall Retailer of the Year: Delilah Fine Foods Ltd, Nottingham Best Retailer: Farm Shop Large and North of England regional winner: Farmer Copleys, Pontefract Best Retailer: Farm Shop Small: Brunswick Organic Nursery Shop (BON Shop), York

Best Retailer: Independent local shop/Village store: The Village Refill, Yarnton, Oxford Best Retailer: Online business: Fordhall Farm Shop, Market Drayton Highly Commended: Pipers Farm, Cullompton

Best Retailer: Other Specialist Retailer Cheesemonger: Must Be Crackers!, Dunfermline

Best Retailer: Other Specialist Retailer Food Hall and South of England regional winner: TEALS Somerset, South Cadbury Best Retailer: Other Specialist Retailer Greengrocer: Kale and Corn, Belper

Highly Commended Other Specialist Retailer: Aubrey Allen, Foodhall, Leamington Spa Newcomer of the Year: Field to Fork, Farm Shop Large, Henley-In-Arden

Highly Commended Newcomer of the Year: Kale and Corn, Greengrocers, Belper and Must Be Crackers! Cheesemongers, Dunfermline Best Retailer Anglia: Morgan’s Butchery Ltd, Halstead Best Retailer Scotland: Marshall’s Farm Shop, Inverurie

Best Retailer Wales: Forage Farm Shop & Kitchen, Cowbridge

Scotland The Brand

Scotland Must Keep the Precision Bred Ban

By Ruth Watson Scotland’s global reputation for high quality food, drink, and agriculture is welldeserved and hard-earned.

The sector is enormously important, providing livelihoods and supporting thriving communities across the country: 47,000 people are employed by our food and drink sector, which is worth £5.2 billion, according to a recent Food and Drink Federation report.

The Scottish Government has long held out against allowing precision bred crops to be grown on a commercial basis, although research is permitted. There has been much breathlessness in some quarters at the news that ministers are in round table discussions to establish what kind of future, if any, precision breeding should have in Scotland’s commercial sector.

I think it is good to know our politicians meet all interested parties around the same table to discuss salient matters, especially as technologies develop and legislation elsewhere shifts.

There is an allure to this technology: it is seen by some as a silver bullet which can sidestep the problems of the climate change and biodiversity collapse our

modern way of living has so carelessly and wantonly accelerated. However, the argument for gene editing to be allowed commercially is one which narrows, rather than broadens, our options, in my view. Limiting our supply chain to a small number of seed merchants could see us in a chokehold. President Trump shows us even so-called allies are prepared to play dirty to exert power and control over other nations.

There also is the argument that it is better to have seeds with a greater diversity of genetic resilience as we face increasingly fickle weather; that we should be supporting our farmers to move towards greater autonomy with regenerative, low input agriculture.

Many have a suspicion that ‘precision bred’ may not always be impact-free. There are people who will seek a premium product, untouched by test tube. By continuing the precision bred ban, Scotland has a defining opportunity to reinforce our reputation as a nation which provides food and drink people can trust.

Ruth Watson is the founder of the Keep Scotland the Brand campaign.

Ruth Watson is the founder of the Keep Scotland the Brand campaign

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Tickets now on sale as top chefs prepare to turn up the heat at the Scottish Game Fair Scotland’s favourite outdoor event is back. The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) Scottish Game Fair is returning to the stunning grounds of Scone Palace this July (4-6), and this year is set to be the most delicious yet, thanks to an all-star lineup of Scotland’s finest chefs and a brand-new food and music collaboration.

The event promises a weekend of country pursuits, heritage, and world-class entertainment, with tickets now on sale.

At the heart of the Scottish Game Fair’s food scene, the team is delighted to be launching an all-new VIP restaurant concept, a unique culinary experience where visitors will be treated to a host of gourmet flavours and a chance to hear from two of Scotland’s biggest culinary stars – Tony

Singh and Michelin starred chef Tom Kitchin. The chefs are renowned for their dedication to Scottish produce and innovative cooking, and will curate exclusive menus throughout the weekend, bringing visitors an unforgettable dining experience infused with flavour.

The celebrity chefs will be supported by Pete Gottens of Private Gourmet Chef. Pete is bringing a truly unique Highland Firecage Kitchen to support the extraordinary menu, using outdoor wood-fired cages to lock in sensational aromas. Guests can expect game that’s been cooked for several hours and savour the tender and mouth-watering flavours that only this style of cooking can deliver.

The new VIP restaurant located by the main arena, offers

Kitchen Theatre. Courtesy Ruaridh Kidd Photography.

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guests the unique opportunity to enjoy ‘food with a view’, making it the perfect place to relax and indulge while soaking up the displays and entertainment.

For those who love a little heat, the brand-new-for-2025 Chilli & Spice experience is set to be a major highlight of the weekend. This exclusive VIP offering, priced from £45 per ticket, includes, a specially curated spicy and flavour-packed dinner, and a reserved ringside seat to enjoy the incredible performance from the legendary Red Hot Chilli Pipers. This unique evening blends bold flavours with high-energy music, promising an unforgettable night.

Alongside celebrity chefs, The ESSE Cookers and Scottish Venison Cookery Theatre will be showcasing some of Scotland’s

Tony Singh. Photo courtesy Tom Kahler.

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best food and drink producers and chefs. Tim Maddams, Richard Dalgleish and Stavros Bampitikos are just some of the names expected to be showcasing their skills at the theatre.

Amy Rankine’s fermentation workshop is also making a return after last year’s success, giving visitors another opportunity to learn about the ancient art of fermentation.

In addition to the culinary delights, the Scottish Game Fair will feature its renowned array of country sports, family-friendly activities, shopping, and GWCT research and conservation exhibits, making it a must-visit event for lovers of Scotland’s great outdoors and traditions.

The Main Arena is renowned for putting on a magnificent show and promises an exciting lineup

SCOTTISH GAME FAIR 2025

Group picture at the Scottish Game Fair. Courtesy JT Lenscraft Photography.

of attractions and performances.

From falconry displays to hounds parades, terrier racing and hill pony displays, there is plenty to keep visitors entertained.

There’s plenty to keep the whole family entertained, and it wouldn’t be a family affair without warmly welcoming fourlegged friends to join in on the fun.

The much-loved Gordon Setter Parade will be back, celebrating this endangered dog breed and offering a chance to appreciate their beauty and heritage. There will also be a new dog parade, seeing rare Scottish breeds such as Caledonian Danie Dinmonts and Scottish Deerhounds gather for the first time in event history.

David Gibson, Country Manager at Stable Events, who organises Scottish Game Fair, is excited to welcome visitors back for another unforgettable weekend celebrating the countryside. He said: “The Scottish Game Fair is a truly spectacular event that brings together people with a passion for rural life, country pursuits, and great food. Set against the breathtaking backdrop of Scone Palace, we’ve curated an experience that offers something for everyone, from thrilling outdoor activities to exceptional culinary delights.

“Whether you’re a local looking for a fantastic family day out, a visitor from further afield keen to immerse yourself in Scotland’s countryside heritage, or someone eager to engage with important conversations around conservation and rural communities, this event is not

to be missed. We can’t wait to welcome everyone for what promises to be our best year yet.”

Tony Singh MBE is excited to be at this year’s Scottish Game Fair. He said: “This is my first time at the Scottish Game Fair with GWCT and I’m super excited to be part of it! I’ve always loved cooking with game - it’s some of the best, most honest produce we’ve got in Scotland and I’m all about making it more accessible to everyone. Getting to celebrate it here, surrounded by rural communities who live and breathe this way of life, is a real joy. It’s going to be a brilliant weekend, great chat and a chance to champion everything that makes Scotland taste amazing.”

Education has always been at the core to the Scottish Game Fair and the theme of the GWCT central exhibit will be “Research into Practice.” It will focus on the various new provisions introduced by the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024 and how they can be effectively implemented. Separate stations will be dedicated to individual topics, such as muirburn and the new Muirburn License, trapping and the new Wildlife Trap License, as well as the future of farming under the new regulatory frameworks. Visitors will also have the opportunity to see live game birds on display, providing a practical insight into sustainable game management. They will learn how to comply with the new provisions and how GWCT can support them in achieving and demonstrating compliance.

Red Hot Chilli Pipers. Courtesy JT Lenscraft Photography

Secure your place at the Scottish Game Fair 2025 today and prepare for an incredible weekend of food, music, and culture at the beautiful Scone Palace.

For more information or to book tickets, visit www.scottishfair.com.

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Ffermio Cymru

Mae Cyswllt Ffermio wedi ehangu ei raglen hyfforddiant gyda naw cwrs newydd, gan roi cyfleoedd newydd i ffermwyr Cymru ddatblygu eu sgiliau.

Bellach gall unigolion cofrestredig gael mynediad at dros 130 o gyrsiau hyfforddiant wedi’i ariannu hyd at 80%.

Mae’r cyrsiau byr hyn, a gynigir gan ddarparwyr hyfforddiant achrededig, yn ymdrin ag ystod wahanol o bynciau, wedi’u categoreiddio o dan fusnes, tir, tir - peiriannau ac offer a da byw.

Un o’r cyrsiau a ychwanegwyd at y rhaglen yw Tystysgrif Ryngwladol ar gyfer Llythrennedd Digidol (ICDL) - Ychwanegol, sy’n darparu hyfforddiant mewn prosesu geiriau gan gynnwys creu dogfennau, golygu, fformatio ac uno post. Mae’r cwrs hefyd yn canolbwyntio ar ddefnyddio taenlenni, cyflwyniadau a gwella cynhyrchiant trwy ddysgu’r rhai sy’n cymryd rhan sut i ddewis y feddalwedd fwyaf effeithlon a chost-effeithiol ar gyfer gwahanol dasgau.

Cwrs newydd arall yw Archwiliad Coed Proffesiynol Lantra sy’n rhoi’r sgiliau i’r cyfranogwyr profiadol sy’n canolbwyntio ar goetiroedd i gynnal archwiliadau coed trylwyr, nodi diffygion ac argymell camau gweithredu o fewn fframweithiau cyfreithiol a rheoli risg. Mae’r cwrs hyfforddiant hwn yn helpu i greu system ddibynadwy ar gyfer archwilio coed, lle gellir egluro a chyfiawnhau’r penderfyniadau a wneir.

Bydd unigolion yn ennill gwybodaeth HACCP uwch ar gyfer gweithgynhyrchu bwyd trwy’r cwrs Dyfarniad Lefel 3 mewn HACCP ar gyfer Gweithgynhyrchu Bwyd.

Mae’r cwrs yn ymdrin â’r camau hanfodol o 18

Cyswllt Ffermio yn Cyflwyno 9 Cwrs Hyfforddiant Ychwanegol i Ffermwyr ddatblygu, gweithredu a gwirio gweithdrefnau sy’n seiliedig ar HACCP, gan ganolbwyntio ar nodi a rheoli peryglon trwy gydol y broses cynhyrchu bwyd.

Mae’r cwrs Gwyddor y Pridd (IBERS) wedi’i gynllunio i edrych ar ffurfiant, priodweddau a swyddogaethau priddoedd, gan bwysleisio eu rôl hollbwysig mewn cynhyrchu bwyd cynaliadwy. Bydd y rhai sy’n cymryd rhan yn ymchwilio i sut mae gweithgareddau dynol yn effeithio ar iechyd y pridd ac yn dysgu defnyddio technegau rheoli cynaliadwy i fynd i’r afael â heriau cyflenwad bwyd heddiw ac yn y dyfodol.

Cwrs arall a gynigir bellach yw Systemau Cyflenwi Cynaliadwy (IBERS) sy’n canolbwyntio ar strategaethau cydweithredol o fewn cadwyni cyflenwi bwyd i wella cynaliadwyedd a diogelwch. Mae’n edrych ar heriau, technolegau arloesol wrth addysgu’r rhai sy’n cymryd rhan i werthuso dulliau cynaliadwyedd a phwysigrwydd rheoli gwybodaeth a pherthnasoedd.

I’r rhai ohonoch sydd â diddordeb mewn trin gwlân, gall dau ddarparwr hyfforddiant gynnig y cwrs hwn – Gwlân Prydain ac Elite Wool Industry Training UK. Bydd Gwlân Prydain yn cynnal cwrs ymarferol undydd ar gyfer dechreuwyr hyd at lefel cystadleuaeth tra bydd Elite Wool Industry Training UK yn cynnal cwrs ymarferol deuddydd ar gyfer pob lefel gallu. Bydd y cyrsiau’n darparu hyfforddiant cynhwysfawr mewn trin cnu, didoli, paratoi, a storio er mwyn sicrhau ansawdd

a bod y gwlân yn barod ar gyfer y farchnad.

Cyrsiau eraill sydd ar gael hefyd yw Cymorth Cyntaf yn y Gweithle mewn Argyfwng (+F) a Gwyddor Cynhyrchu Da Byw. I gael rhagor o wybodaeth am y cyrsiau hyfforddiant newydd hyn ewch i https://businesswales.gov. wales/farmingconnect/cy/busnes/ sgiliau-hyfforddiant/cyrsiauhyfforddiant neu cysylltwch â’ch Swyddog Datblygu Lleol, neu Ganolfan Wasanaeth Cyswllt Ffermio ar 03456 000 813.

Arolwg yn Datgelu Arwyddion Cadarnhaol ar gyfer Adar Tir Amaeth sy’n Destun Pryder o Safbwynt Cadwraeth ar Ffermydd Cymru Mae arolwg diweddar o ffermydd Cymru sy’n cymryd rhan yn yr Arolwg Adar sy’n Nythu wedi dangos arwyddion calonogol ar gyfer sawl aderyn

sy’n destun pryder o safbwynt cadwraeth. Nododd arolwg adar sy’n nythu 2024, sef prosiect rhwng Cyswllt Ffermio a RSPB Cymru a gynhaliwyd rhwng mis

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Ebrill a mis Gorffennaf 2024, 49 o rywogaethau adar gwahanol ar draws y ffermydd sy’n rhan o Rwydwaith Ein Ffermydd Cyswllt Ffermio, gyda nifer

Ffermio Cymru cyfartalog o 29 rhywogaeth fesul fferm.

Bu i’r prosiect gysylltu gwirfoddolwyr gyda ffermydd sy’n cymryd rhan yn Rhwydwaith Ein Ffermydd Cyswllt Ffermio i fonitro ac arolygu adar tir amaeth. Nod y prosiect oedd darparu data gwerthfawr i ffermwyr i lywio eu dealltwriaeth o rywogaethau ar eu ffermydd a hybu bioamrywiaeth o fewn y dirwedd amaethyddol, gan gyfrannu at waith monitro bioamrywiaeth ledled y DU. Yn hollbwysig, mae wyth o’r rhywogaethau hyn yn cael eu dosbarthu fel adar tir amaeth sy’n destun pryder o safbwynt cadwraeth yn y DU: Gwenoliaid y Bondo, Aderyn y To, Gwybedog Mannog, Petrisen, Brych y Coed, Corhedydd y Coed, Corhedydd y Waun a’r Gog. Mae eu presenoldeb ar y ffermydd hyn yn amlygu pwysigrwydd posibl tir amaeth wrth ddarparu cynefin gwerthfawr i’r adar hyn a sut mae gan dir amaeth ran hanfodol i’w chwarae wrth gyfrannu at fioamrywiaeth ledled Cymru.

Mae’r adroddiad yn cynnig darlun clir o ba adar sy’n bresennol a’u helaethrwydd a dealltwriaeth fwy trylwyr am fywyd gwyllt o fewn y dirwedd amaethyddol.

Bydd yr adroddiadau sylfaenol hyn yn helpu ffermwyr i ddeall pa rywogaethau sy’n bresennol ar eu fferm a sut y gallant addasu eu harferion i ddiogelu’r rhywogaethau hyn neu annog rhai newydd. Bydd y data a gasglwyd hefyd yn cyfrannu at ddealltwriaeth ehangach o boblogaethau bywyd gwyllt mewn lleoliadau amaethyddol ledled Cymru.

“Gydag oddeutu 90% o dir amaeth yng Nghymru, mae

arferion y byd amaeth yn chwarae rhan hanfodol yn nyfodol llawer o rywogaethau bywyd gwyllt y DU,” meddai Lynfa Davies, Swyddog Bioamrywiaeth Cyswllt Ffermio.

“Mae canlyniadau’r arolwg hwn yn galonogol ac yn dangos yr effaith gadarnhaol y gellir ei chael trwy ymdrechion cydweithredol rhwng ffermwyr a gwirfoddolwyr. Rydym yn gobeithio y bydd y wybodaeth hon yn ysbrydoli ffermwyr i ddarparu cynefin ychwanegol ar eu ffermydd wrth iddynt nodi camau gweithredu y gallant eu cymryd o fewn y Cynllun Ffermio Cynaliadwy newydd yng Nghymru.”

Dywedodd Tîm Prosiect Monitro Bywyd Gwyllt Tir Fferm (VMFW) Gwirfoddolwyr RSPB Cymru fod arolygon fel hyn yn hollbwysig i ffermwyr a sefydliadau fel y RSPB. “Mae’n amser hollbwysig i ffermwyr ddeall cyflwr bioamrywiaeth yn eu tirwedd, gan fod ffermydd a bywyd gwyllt yn wynebu newidiadau yn ymwneud â’r hinsawdd ac amaethyddiaeth.

Mae cynnal arolwg bywyd gwyllt yn galluogi’r derbynnydd i weithredu trwy wybod pa rywogaethau sy’n bresennol, pam eu bod yn bresennol a sut y gellir eu hannog i ffynnu.”

“Mae arolygon hefyd yn galluogi prosiectau fel VMFW i ddeall pa adnoddau sydd eu hangen i ffermwyr gael eu hysbrydoli a bod yn hyddysg i weithredu dros fywyd gwyllt”.

Am ragor o wybodaeth am yr arolwg adar sy’n nythu neu am unrhyw wasanaeth arall sydd ar gael drwy Cyswllt Ffermio, edrychwch ar ein gwefan. https://businesswales.gov.wales/ farmingconnect/cy

FARMING SCOTLAND MAGAZINE Next issue out July 2025 Subscription page 113 www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com

The potential of the hemp crop in Scotland Is the hemp crop about to become mainstream in Scotland? A study published in March 2025 titled: “Advancing a Sustainable Scottish Supply Chain for Industrial Hemp and Co-Products”, identified the potential of this highly versatile crop as a profitable break crop for farmers, the source of a wide range of natural products for industry and as an excellent method of carbon sequestration. It was funded by the Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre and Scottish Enterprise and delivered by SAC Consulting.

The world hemp market is projected to grow 400% by 2030 as demand increases for biobased materials to replace products derived from fossil fuels. Industrial hemp is used across sectors such as agriculture, automotives, bio-energy, construction, food and beverages, furniture, paper, personal care, recycling, and textiles.

Hemp crop trials in Scotland in 2024 confirmed that hemp grows well, particularly across central and eastern regions. Once established (late April/ early May) growth is rapid with typically 95-110 days between sowing and cutting in August, by which time crops have grown over 2 metres in height. The cut crop then relies on retting in the field; a 4–6-week process

that requires proximity to the soil and moisture for soil microbes to break up the lignin and cellulose in the fibre before rowing up and baling when the crop has dried.

The study assessed the feasibility of setting up a grower co-operative supplying a decortication and cleaning plant, processing up to 12,000 tonnes per year grown from 2000 ha. Capital cost of the decortication and cleaning plant is estimated at around £5 million, preferably with significant investment from farmers to obtain added value from the hemp crop.

Barriers to entry include a less-than-straightforward licencing system, limited demand from the construction industry for natural products and a lack of incentives to pump-prime the development of a hemp grower co-operative and the associated processing facilities. Establishment of a new bio-fibre steering committee for Scotland looks to be progressing and will hopefully increase momentum for a clear policy framework and industry incentives for biofibre, together with a governmentbacked carbon credit platform to valourise the crops’ contribution to the circular economy. Progress here would greatly aid the establishment of a network of hemp and other fibre crop co-ops in Scotland.

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ARTICLE

AGCO Beauvais engineering leads French consortium developing hydrogen storage tanks for MF tractors AGCO Beauvais has announced that its engineering department in France is leading a newly created French consortium called ARHYSTOTE. This consortium will develop the next generation of smart hydrogen storage tanks specifically designed for hydrogen combustion tractors.

“This project forms an integral part of AGCO’s commitment to develop offroad solutions to sustainably meet farmers’ needs including the development of a Massey Ferguson hydrogen demonstrator tractor by 2026,” says Frédéric Cavoleau, Vice President of Engineering at the AGCO’s Beauvais facility in France.

On-board storage is a critical component of hydrogen powered off-road machines. Hydrogen needs to be shrunk into a tight space through high pressure to store enough to meet duty cycle requirements. As such, this consortium of French based companies, AGCO, Cetim, IPC, IFTH, Raigi and OliKrom have joined forces to invest in hydrogen storage technology and develop novel, high pressure hydrogen storage tanks aimed for use in an agricultural tractor as well as for other off-road heavy applications.

The project will undertake eight steps including analysis, manufacture and initial testing of the tank design proving feasibility and a clear route to industrialisation and integration into a future Massey Ferguson hydrogen tractor. This will generate confidence that the machine will perform to the 20

challenging standards required in global agriculture.

Project ARHYSTOTE has secured 4,4 million € funding (split between consortium members) by the French State as part of France 2030 operated by ADEME (the French agency for ecological transition).

“The zero emissions (at exhaust) demonstrator tractor will be based on the characteristics of the conventional Massey Ferguson mid horse-power tractor platform and will leverage Massey Ferguson’s Eco-design approach as well as the full potential of a highly capable AGCO Power engine” adds Frédéric Cavoleau, “This engine concept will bring significant development cost reductions for the overall tractor because it is built on a familiar design and architecture. Moreover, the cooling, transmission and hydraulic systems are similar to these used in diesel engines while seamlessly integrating the newly developed hydrogen tanks under the cab.”

A Project Contributing to Decarbonization Through Hydrogen Development.

“At AGCO and Massey Ferguson, we are convinced that we must have a positive impact on our communities by reducing our operations’ as well as our farmers’ environmental footprint to secure a sustainable world for future generations,” says Thierry Lhotte, Vice-President & Managing Director Massey Ferguson Europe & Middle East. “Amongst other alternatives, expanding the use of hydrogen is a cornerstone of the needed energy transition.

Hydrogen perfectly suits heavyduty off-road vehicles requirements such as mid-horsepower tractors, keeping our global promise to offer Straightforward, Dependable and Accessible products and services to farmers feeding the world in a sustainable manner.”

Partners contributions to the project.

AGCO is already developing hydrogen combustion engines through research and development work done at the engine production plant of AGCO Power in Nokia, Finland.

Cetim will contribute its technical skills to the project, especially in relation to the

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material aspects to design and manufacture high pressure composite thermoplastic tanks.

RAIGI will contribute its expertise in the manufacture of hydrogen liners for the project.

These parts are vital to ensure the hydrogen storage is both efficient and safe.

IFTH will oversee the spinning of thermoplastic formulations integrating pigments, design and implementation of the functional thread (sensor, detector, etc.).

CT-IPC will contribute to developing innovative liner for the hydrogen a pioneering technical centre dedicated to developing advanced liners using new thermoplastic compounds. Our mission extends to creating sustainable solutions for hydrogen tanks based on thermoplastic composites, utilizing recycled materials to ensure eco-friendly and highperformance composites.

OliKrom will contribute its skills in photochemistry, and its expertise in developing intelligent materials with calibrated properties. The aim is to develop Hydrogen and shocksensitive pigments.

environment Overlooking microplastics threatens the future of farming, says Symphony Environmental Leading sustainable plastics manufacturer urges farmers & growers to halt their use of ordinary plastic mulch films, which contaminate the soil and affect food quality.

Whilst ocean plastic has been a serious environmental concern for years, the plastic problem is just as important when it comes to land and soil contamination.

New plastic-manufacturing methods are needed.

Michael Laurier, CEO of environmental technology leaders Symphony Environmental,

argues that farmers and growers must switch to the right kind of biodegradable plastic to prevent the ongoing environmental damage caused by plastic pollution year after year.

“Farmers and growers spread plastic mulch films on their fields to protect crops and reduce water evaporation, but conventional plastic films can’t be recycled easily after use due to contamination and degradation. Also they release fragments and microplastics into the environment when

being removed from the field after exposure to sunlight and weathering.

“A mulch film made with Symphony’s NbR resin instead of normal polyethylene doesn’t have this issue, because it will biodegrade after the harvest without needing collection and transfer to a composting facility.

It can be programmed to degrade in the timescale required for each type of crop, and will be a source of carbon for next year’s plants.”

“This resin can be produced by mulch-film manufacturers

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at lower cost than normal polyethylene using their standard equipment, as it contains 20% less fossil-derived plastic” The alternative bio-based plastic is too expensive and may not be strong enough to resist tearing. Most important, the timescale for degradation cannot be programmed.

Laurier concludes, “Plastic pollution of the countryside needs to be addressed urgently, and farmers and growers now have the opportunity to do this at no extra cost.”

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renewable energy

Investing in renewables revolution £10 million planned for Port of Nigg project

Public investment is planned for a major redevelopment project at Port of Nigg in the Highlands.

Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) has approved up to £10 million to support development of the port’s Inner East Quay, which will result in the creation of a new heavy-duty quayside and the introduction of roll-on roll-off capability.

The project, which is subject to formal approval by Global Energy Nigg Limited, will increase capacity and capabilities at the port, attracting new companies and investment while supporting operations across the country’s growing offshore wind operations.

HIE’s investment forms part of the Scottish Government’s commitment to strategically invest up to £500m over five years to anchor the nation’s offshore wind supply chain.

Port of Nigg is recognised by developers as a prime location for 22

the manufacturing and assembly of offshore wind components and has a significant track record within Scotland’s offshore wind industry, having managed over 3.5GW of assets through the facility.

In 2024, high voltage cable manufacturer Sumitomo Electric Power Cables Ltd chose to establish a £350 million high voltage cable manufacturing facility in the area - with Nigg serving as the primary export facility.

Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes said: “This is a prime example of how we and our enterprise agencies are focused on stimulating investment and targeting projects that will in turn act as a catalyst to further investment, jobs and opportunities.

“Given its location and being part of Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport, The Port of Nigg is strategically important

to the growth and success of the offshore wind sector. An investment of this nature sends a clear signal to investors that Scotland is open for business, and the Scottish Government and our partners stand ready to help unleash the enormous economic benefits of our offshore wind industry.”

HIE’s director of strategic projects David Oxley, said: “Our support for this project is about keeping the UK and the Highlands and Islands region at the forefront of the energy sector, particularly renewable energy, and strengthening our international competitiveness.

“There are many obvious benefits for the region’s economy and job creation. I’m delighted we’ve been able to facilitate further Scottish Government funding and look forward to continuing our collaboration with our public sector partners and industry as the project develops.”

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Chairman of Global Energy Group Roy MacGregor, said: “We welcome this significant investment from HIE and the Scottish Government, which reinforces their commitment to strengthening Scotland’s offshore wind supply chain. Since acquiring Nigg in 2011, we have invested more than £120 million in transforming the facility into a world-class offshore wind superhub, ensuring it remains at the forefront of the energy transition.

“Today, renewables account for half of our revenue at both GEG and Nigg, underlining the critical role this sector plays in our business and the wider economy. Strategically positioned to support Scotland’s future offshore wind projects through ScotWind and INTOG, Nigg will drive sustainable job creation and long-term economic prosperity for the Highlands.”

renewable energy Wates hails hydrogen as a sustainable fuel of the future

Wates Group sees hydrogen as a major contributor to its plans to reduce carbon emissions across its operations after successfully trialling a JCB generator powered by the fuel.

The company, one of the UK’s leading family-owned development, building and property maintenance companies, has been trialling a JCB 60kVA hydrogen combustion generator on a site near Wolverhampton.

Coupled with a 104kWh Powerpack battery storage unit, the intelligent combined power system can operate on battery power alone, as a hybrid (using both battery and generator power), or hydrogen-powered only.

Adam Cannon, Project Director at Wates, said: “One of the questions we get from customers is how can you make site set-up more energy efficient and more carbon neutral? We’ve been trying other fuels, but they’ve been a bit of a challenge. Hydrogen for me is the way forward. It is completely new thinking for power for our accommodation on site and it really reduces the burden from the statutory authority having to bring new cables and infrastructure to site. It will allow us to be standalone and to offer a carbon neutral offering to our customers.”

Jonny Wates, Director, added: “Zero emission power on sites is a fundamental building block to get us to our ambition. We’re really excited to partner with JCB on hydrogen, because its cleaner energy. Fundamentally, it’s about

the emissions, the particulates and the noise that you associate with a diesel generator. We need to be changing quite rapidly, to adapt to what our customers want, to what our broader stakeholders want, but also to what we believe is our responsibility in addressing the challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss.”

Chris Dempsey, Managing Director of Energy Solutions at supplier Sunbelt Rentals said: “Making it as simple as possible is key. Essentially, this is internal combustion technology, which is well known within the market.

It’s quite easy for our customers to relate to that technology.”

Mr Cannon added: “The fuel can be transported to site in the same way as diesel. It’s mobile, it’s quick to refuel and you’ve got your generator turned back on and functioning.”

Tim Burnhope, Group Director - Special Projects at JCB commented. “The power generation sector is really important to JCB. In the future we’re going to need a lot more electricity and zero-carbon electricity. Having a generator that produces electricity using hydrogen, is fundamental to that future. We have a tube trailer that delivers the hydrogen to site. We park next to the generator, couple the tube trailer to the generator and then we consume fuel as you would with any other system. We swap over with a fresh tank and continue to produce carbon-free electricity on site.”

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Protecting our farming and food sectors and the rural economy I am fully aware of the difficulties facing our farmers and crofters at the moment especially in regards to the spread of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) across Europe.

The Scottish Government does not have border control powers and that’s why I have written to the UK Government Ministers who lead the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) requesting urgent action in securing our borders and tightening biosecurity measures.

I recently visited Edinburgh Airport to see the unique Scottish Government funded detector dogs, which have been trained to source Products of Animal Origin (PoAO) entering Scotland illegally and it was clear this problem is endemic. Frankly, more action must be taken to stop these products entering our country.

We need clear messaging which targets routes from countries with active animal disease situations, such as those with confirmed FMD outbreaks like Hungary, Slovakia, Germany and affected bordering countries such as Austria.

Where people from affected countries are coming from rural areas, farms or working in industries dealing with POAO, those travellers should be expected to make themselves known to border control before entering the country. I have asked the UK Government to reinstate the landing card system which helped keep track of these

By Jim Fairlie, Agriculture Minister types of travellers, specifically during this period of increased threat or an equivalent measure.

I want everyone in Scottish agriculture to be assured, that despite the limited powers we have, we are not sitting back and waiting for action. That is why I have asked Scotland’s Chief Veterinary Officer, Shelia Voas to work with our ports and airports to establish how to better share information with passengers, both exiting and entering the country.

I want to ensure robust border biosecurity measures are put in place to protect our valued farmers, crofters and their livestock in the face of increasing threats from ofexotic notifiable diseases including FMD and African Swine Fever (ASF).

I am determined to protect our farming and food sectors and the rural economy. The economic impacts of not taking action to prevent disease incursion would be very high, but the real cost of a disease outbreak would be catastrophic for people’s wellbeing and cause real pain and suffering for our rural communities. None of us ever want to experience that again.

new

to market

McHale F5 Fixed Chamber Baler Range

McHale F5-550 - Rear Shot

The McHale F550 & F5000 fixed chamber baler ranges have been the machine of choice for farmers and contractors around the world for over two decades.

This year, McHale are proud to present the new McHale F5 Range of Fixed Chamber Balers comprising of four models: - F5-540: Non-Chopper Baler - F5-550: 15 Knife Chopper, Semi-Automatic Baler - F5-560: 25 Knife Chopper, Fully Automatic Baler - F5-560 Plus: 25 Knife Chopper, Fully Automatic Film Binding Baler The new F5 range introduces our newly designed Profi-Flo pick-up featuring enhanced throughput and increased crop flow. Bale density and bale binding has increased in performance to produce higher 24

density bales. A focus has also been placed on operator comfort whilst still ensuring the reliability and heavy-duty build quality that McHale is renowned for is maintained.

In designing the new F5 range, operator comfort and friendliness were at the forefront of the machine’s development.

All machines in the F5 range deliver a number of new features through their various control consoles, while ISOBUS compatible machines allow the operator to experience the highest level of customisation and machine performance.

For the purpose of this press release we will focus on the New McHale F5-550 which is the most popular machine in the market. Building on the renowned fixed chamber baler

reputation, McHale has added the following new features: Profi-Flo Pick-Up McHale have designed their highest capacity pick-up for the F5 range. The new ProfiFlo pick-up has been designed to increase crop intake through more efficient crop flow and has been engineered to ensure end users are operating with a high-performance pick-up that is designed to suit various working conditions.

The new tapered feed channel encourages the crop to flow from the pick-up, towards the rotor and into the bale chamber, maximising throughput. To reduce maintenance, all Profi-Flo pick-ups are fitted with a heavier driveline which reduces chain load and increases chain life.

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Customers can choose between a 5-tine bar cam track pick-up or, the optional, wider 6-tine bar camless pick-up. Behind the tines, customers will notice a number of changes to improve the flow of crop into the chamber.

McHale have also introduced the Adaptive Intake which has been specifically designed to allow the intake area to automatically adjust up and down to changes in material flow.

The design of this intake area has a number of advantages; • It automatically adjusts to the volume of crop which allows the machine capacity to be maximised in light and heavy rows / swaths.

• Intake area automatically adjusts to allow the machine to better handle uneven and lumpy rows / swaths.

NEW TO MARKET • Better crop intake.

• Less chance of occurring.

blockages

Martin McHale - McHale Marketing & Sales Director said: “The new F5 range has focused on higher output and comfort for the operator. There is a significant increase in throughput thanks to the new Profi-Flo pick-up along with higher bale density and overall machine performance. The design team have also enhanced the baling experience for the operator using the new i-Control 5 console or ISOBUS options are now available.”

1000 RPM Gearbox All machines in the F5 range are equipped with a 540 rpm gearbox as standard. In order to optimise machine performance, a 1000 rpm gearbox is available as an optional extra which provides the following advantages: • The 1000 rpm gearbox results in an increase in PTO speed with a substantially reduced torque.

This reduces the sharp loads on the drive line, providing the clutch setting with 10% more capacity which reduces the risk of blockages and provides more throughput.

• The option to select 540 rpm (if available) on the tractor for easier restarts in the unlikelihood of blocking.

• Better fuel economy is achieved due to lower tractor engine revs by running the machine at the recommended PTO speed of 890 rpm when using the 1000 rpm gearbox.

machines through i-Control 5 console which allows the operator to choose from settings 1-10 for improved bale density and shape depending on their working conditions.

All F5-550 machines have a Bale Size Adjustment capability to enable the operator to alter the bale size for different crops. Bale size can range from 1.25m to 1.30m.

Ease of Operation & Maintenance has been forefront to the design of the new F5 range with the introduction of Quick Attach Wheels, Simple Chain Adjustment, Larger Oil Tank and Easy Machine Attachment.

Quick Attach Wheels are fitted on all machines in the F5 range. By simply pulling the lever, wheels can be quickly & easily fitted and removed to the pick-up without the need for any pins. Access to the wheels has also improved when in storage.

Simple Chain Adjustment is carried out using spring tension adjustment which allows for quick self-adjustment to ensure tight chains and optimum performance.

A new Larger Oil Tank with 8 litre capacity allows the for increased maintenance intervals.

All machines in the F5 range feature hydraulic hose grips for Easy Machine Attachment to the tractor.

ISOBUS Compatibility The McHale F5-550 can be specified with ISOBUS as an optional extra. All McHale F5560 and F5-560 Plus machines are ISOBUS compatible as standard.

McHale ISOBUS machines can be plugged into any ISOBUS tractor connection and operated via the tractor’s own terminal in the cab. If the customer wishes to operate an ISOBUS controlled machine with a tractor that is not ISOBUS compatible, they can do so through the McHale ISO-PLAY 7 or ISO-PLAY 12 console which are available as an optional extra. An additional tractor wiring loom is required to do this.

Other Additional Features Depending on machine

specification, there are a number of additional features available for ISOBUS machines including: Auto Unblock when connected to an ISOBUS tractor, Automatic Drop Floor Reset, Auto Knife Drop & Knife Cleaning cycle along with Internal Panel Lighting which is available as an optional extra.

Kieran Hughes - McHale UK Sales Manager said: “The new Profi-Flo pick-up delivers a greatly improved intake which increases capacity.

Customers are really pleased with the option of a 1000 rpm gearbox. The i-Control 5 console and offering ISOBUS, if preferred, has also made the whole baling experience easier and more enjoyable for operators from a driving and maintenance perspective.”

To learn more about the new McHale F5 range, please visit www.mchale.net or contact your local McHale Area Representative.

Other new features on the F5 range of machines include: Bale binding has an improved performance on both Net or NRF binding mechanisms when operating at high densities. A Dual Feed Netting System ensures increased net tension on all F5-550 machines as the net is applied to the bale using a rubber feed roller whilst a steel roller clamps the net to the chosen tension. All ISOBUS machines can adjust net from the tractor cab.

In-Cab Bale Density Adjustment is now available on all F5-550

McHale F5-550 - Ejecting a Bale

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science & technology

Eight-hundred specialist growth trays shipped to UAE for first phase of 200 vertical farm tower British vertical farming technology manufacturer, Intelligent Growth Solutions (IGS), has sent its first major consignment of specialist parts to the UAE for the world’s first GigaFarm at Dubai Food Tech Valley. This infrastructure project is being developed on a 900,000 sq. ft. plot

by Dubai-based group, ReFarm Global (ReFarmTM), as part of an initiative designed to address food security.

The initial shipment will consist of 800 6m2 Growth Trays with Lights (GTLs), which are the individual trays that sit within the 12-metre-high vertical farming towers. These patented trays are an essential component of IGS’ indoor growing system, offering advanced climate control for optimal crop growth.

ReFarmTM and IGS formally broke ground on the project in November 2024. When complete, the “GigaFarm” will co-locate six complementary technologies, of which vertical farming is just one, establishing a self-contained closed-loop ecosystem designed to maximise resource efficiency and prevent waste going to landfill.

Gareth Thomas, UK Minister for Exports, said: “Our Plan for Change is backing British business to take advantage of opportunities to export abroad, while sharing innovation and growing the economy.

“Following the Business and Trade Secretary’s visit to the GigaFarm site in Dubai last year, it’s particularly exciting 26

to see the next phase of IGS’ world leading vertical farming technology. Our work to boost trade and investment in the region will continue to deliver jobs and opportunities in the UK.” The site will begin food production later this year and will be capable of growing more than three million kilos of produce annually using IGS vertical farming technology. In addition, by diverting more than 50,000 tonnes of food waste from landfill each year through integrated waste-tovalue and regenerative farming technologies, the GigaFarm will significantly advance the UAE’s efforts to decarbonise food production, replacing 1% of the country’s fresh produce imports.

Andrew Lloyd, Chief Executive Officer of Intelligent

Growth Solutions (IGS), commented: “This marks a significant milestone as we begin shipment of the technology which can help unlock a more sustainable era of food production.

Our state-of-the-art GTLs are a crucial component of our vertical farm systems, enhancing

both productivity and resource efficiency for crop growth, which is particularly vital in the UAE’s arid climate.

“I would like to extend my gratitude to both the UAE and UK governments for continuing to support this transformative project.”

New Syngenta Portal accesses digital data to support crop management decisions The all-new Syngenta Portal now gives farmers and agronomists instant access to essential weather data and digital crop management tools on the move, to help make more timely and effective day-to-day agronomy decisions.

The advanced digital ag Syngenta Portal app for smartphone and tablet taps into a vast global database of weather metrics, and applies the relevant information to individual farms.

The easy to interpret weather metrics have been specifically

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selected by Syngenta agronomists and application specialists for their influence on crop growth and management.

The Syngenta Portal app also integrates with the company’s Partnership Plan loyalty programme, giving growers

science & technology access to their account, topical recommendations, new products and valuable offers. Members can view their available rewards, including gift cards from popular retailers, 3D ninety nozzles and a wide range of Apple products.

The app is available now to download for free from the App Store and Google Play.

Registration is quick and easy to enter farm details and start receiving tailored agronomy information. Existing users of the original Syngenta myField app may see an auto-update to the Syngenta Portal and simply need to update their registration and farm details.

First up for agronomy tools in the new Syngenta Portal is the BlightCast model, which uses the Hutton Criteria to provide a 7-day advance disease and infection warning for a farm location and enables growers to fine-tune their blight protection strategy.

The QUANTIS TM Heat Stress tool gives potato and sugar beet growers a 7-day forecast of temperatures that risk damaging effects on root crops. QUANTIS should always be applied at tuber initiation, but can also help to mitigate temperature impacts throughout the season. Having advance warning allows growers to take preventative action and apply QUANTIS™ at the optimum time.

The highly popular and wellregarded Syngenta BYDV Assist will be available in the app for the autumn season. It also creates the platform for further cereal disease forecasting models and crop management support in the future, according to Syngenta Customer Loyalty Lead, Ed Flint.

“Using these tools enables farmers and agronomists to foresee potential risks before they impact on the crop, and in time to take appropriate preventative action,” he advises.

Syngenta Portal also integrates elements such as spray window opportunities to optimise application timing and enables indepth interrogation of the weather data, such as rainfall, soil moisture and soil temperatures, to better understand the implications for crops at an individual farm level.

“It now goes one stage further, by providing direct links

to solutions and techniques that will help in decision making and practical applications, including essential product label and safety data sheet information,” Ed points out.

“Using the Syngenta Portal app to support agronomy decisions on a daily basis ensures growers are up to date with the very latest information and advice.”

Omex launch next generation SAP service in the UK Making a highly accurate and topical assessment of a plant’s true nutritional status using its own sap, rather than relying on the conventional tissue testing option, has been paying dividends for OMEX customers for decades.

OMEX Agriculture has further developed its UK based SAP analysis service, which marks the companies next generation of SAP Analysis testing. The new system encompasses the traditional benefits its customers expect, such as a 72 hour turnaround and agronomist verified reports.

However, the new testing system offers growers 20+ test parameters and a refreshed report layout to help make input decisions even more accurate.

OMEX’s upgraded SAP analysis service allows growers to make more accurate and better informed decisions about the actual level of crop nutrients available in

a crop, and what is then required to ensure the best performance of that crop is achieved.

Maintaining a 72hr service from the time the samples reach OMEX laboratories through to the customer receiving the SAP results, the company has also increased the number of parameters it can test to more than 20 and includes parameters such as NO3 (Nitrate), NH4 (Ammonium), P, K, Mg, S, Ca, Na, Cl, Mn, B, Cu, Fe, Zn, Mo, Si, pH, EC (electrical conductivity) and Brix (content of sugars).

“OMEX is the innovator of the unique SAP service in the UK,” explains national agronomy manager, Scott Baker. “Its accuracy is far superior to conventional tissue testing because it measures what has actually been taken up by a plant, and can thus help diagnose rooting problems and availability issues.”

Mr Baker adds that routinely monitoring crops is vital to understand how a crop is

performing nutritionally, and analysing the sap helps guide agronomic decisions on foliar nutrition options.

OMEX has a team of FACTS and BASIS qualified advisors to support and advise on nutritional decisions, combined with the support of a worldwide research and development facility using laboratory and UK field testing facilities.

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“As part of OMEX’s Greener Planet Commitment the company continues to invest in its sustainable farming services and SAP Analysis forms a key part of that,” explains Mr Baker. “Having cutting edge technology at our UK labs is helping furnish our customers with the information needed to make rapid decisions about crop inputs.”

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Open Farm Sunday 2025

Connect consumers with Scottish farming Ahead of this year’s Open Farm Sunday, Farming Scotland speaks to one of last year’s hosts, David Greer, and NFU Scotland Regional Manager, Lorna Paterson about how to make your event shine and why it’s so important to take part Showcasing Scottish agriculture Old Cullen Farms, a 1,700 hectare in-hand farming enterprise on the Seafield Estate along the Moray coast, is a prime example of how hosting an Open Farm Sunday event can provide a valuable opportunity for farmers to connect with local communities.

The farm primarily produces high-quality malting barley the bulk of which is marketed

through a local farmer cooperative to produce The Glenlivet malt whisky, along with a variety of other crops, including winter wheat, oilseed rape, carrots, and potatoes.

Hosting Open Farm Sunday for the first time in 2024 was overseen by the Estate’s property director David Greer, who volunteered to take part in response to a request a

Open Farm Sunday event at Seafield Estates June 2024

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the Northeast regional NFU Scotland board meeting. .Reflecting on his experience, Mr Greer believes the annual open day provides a valuable chance for farmers to bridge the knowledge gap: “I decided to host, mainly because the public are our customers and it’s important to tell them about what we’re doing and why.

“There’s increasingly a disconnect and lack of awareness about what’s involved in farming and where food comes from. I think we have a responsibility to deliver a positive showcase of Scottish farming,” he adds.

“I had a lot of anticipation about the event, but once the visitors arrived it was great speaking with them. We saw firsthand how much they appreciated learning about farming practices and the hard work that goes into producing food. Everyone is eager to find out more, and the parents are every bit as excited as their kids.

It really is a great family day out.”

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Getting the right support For farmers considering taking part in Open Farm Sunday this year, Mr Greer offers reassurance that it’s manageable, worthwhile and rewarding.

“There’s a misconception around how complicated it is to host an event, but with the resources and support provided by the event organiser’s LEAF, it’s actually quite straightforward,” he says.

“When we started planning our event, we relied heavily on the information pack and downloadable resources available on the Open Farm Sunday website, I can’t recommend them highly enough. They are really excellent.”

When it comes to practical aspects of hosting such as health and safety considerations, the website also provides a wealth of information and Zoom recordings to watch online, featuring farmer hosts sharing their past experiences.

When it came to the day itself, Mr Greer co-ordinated

OPEN FARM SUNDAY with Lorna Paterson from NFU Scotland and workers from the Estate offices and home farm along with local NFUS members to provide hands-on support.

“We also worked with tractor dealers and others to showcase the whole supply chain, which meant there were plenty of knowledgeable volunteers on hand to chat to visitors.”

Making learning engaging Information stations were set up for each crop grown, featuring fun educational activities. This included guessing how many Maltesers could be made from a square metre of barley – a simple way of engaging younger guests while illustrating the farm’s crop outputs.

While the weather didn’t cooperate, with heavy rain and wind, a barn set up with farm machinery became an instant hit.

“We had a collection of vintage tractors that had been brought in by local enthusiasts.

These sat alongside our modern combine harvesters and machinery as a comparison, to show how farming has evolved and the technological innovations that we use today,” says Mr Greer.

“Alongside this, the tractor trailer tours were also incredibly popular and a great way for visitors to see different parts of the Estate.”

Lessons learned Mr Greer says; “Having a weatherproof backup plan is key. It’s important to have an attraction that can keep people entertained and informed if it’s raining. Fortunately, our machinery display served that purpose.

“My advice is never assume what people know about farming and don’t over complicate the message you’re trying to convey.

“Collaborate with neighbouring farmers. I’m very much hoping that from now on, we’ll be able to put on at least one Open Farm Sunday event in our area, every year.”

A growing initiative Since its inception in 2006, Open

Farm Sunday has attracted more than 3.25 million visitors across 6,000 events in Britain. Scottish farmers have taken part each year, helping the public of all ages to understand and support sustainable farming practices.

Regional support Lorna Paterson, NFU Scotland’s regional manager in the North East, volunteered at Old Cullen Farms and is actively involved in recruiting Scottish farmers to take part in the initiative.

“For me, it’s really important to ensure non-farming folk are made aware of the challenges within our industry, along with the really great work farmers do and what farming achieves,” she says.

“Having better communication with our consumers would be hugely advantageous and that’s one of the reasons why I and NFU Scotland proactively support Open Farm Sunday.

“The initiative is a great way to reach families across Scotland, to dispel myths about farmer’s responsibility for climate change and provide insight into all the fantastic work Scottish farmers are doing. Not just in keeping us fed but protecting biodiversity and the natural landscape that so many people treasure.”

“The public are curious to know what’s happening on Scottish farms, they want to connect with nature and the story of farming, they want their children to know where their food comes from. The best people to showcase this are you - the farmers. I’d encourage all Scottish farmers to consider taking part and welcoming visitors to your farm this June, for Open Farm Sunday,” she adds.

Get involved This year, Open Farm Sunday is on June 8th, but events can take place on alternative June dates. The national OFS team at Linking Environment And Farming (LEAF) is especially keen to encourage first-time hosts to participate. If you’re a Scottish farmer interested in taking part,

Bogton Farm

The vintage machinery display proved popular

Open Farm Sunday trailer tour

the process is simple, and support is readily available to help you make your event a success. To discuss event ideas and get your questions answered, contact: OpenFarmSunday@leaf.eco, or

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call Annabel: 07912 463151 or Jess: 07512 307834.

For more general information and to register an Open Farm Sunday event, visit www.farmsunday.org.

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ARTICLE

A record number of women leaders are helping to transform the rural economy in Scotland Says Elevator CEO, Rachel Ross

The organisation celebrates a record 72% of women participating in the Scottish Rural Leadership Programme Following International Women’s Day, Scotland’s leading entrepreneurial support organisation Elevator is celebrating not only the imminent appointment of its first female CEO but a remarkable surge in the number of women participating in its Scottish Rural Leadership Programme.

Back in March, Rachel Ross took over from Professor Gary McEwan to lead Elevator into its next chapter as it continues to shape Scotland’s entrepreneurial future and support the inventors, disruptors and game-changers of today and tomorrow.

And, as she prepared to take on the top job, she revealed a remarkable success for the social enterprise in agriculture and other traditional rural industries, a sector which traditionally has been male-dominated.

The number of women participating in the Scottish Rural Leadership Programme, which aims to transform the country’s rural economy, has hit a record high of 72%, up from 58% the previous year and 54% the year before that.

Rachel Ross said: “The growing number of women leaders in rural businesses is remarkable.

As the rural economy diversifies, 30

Scottish Rural Leadership Programme - female participants

it’s inspiring to see more women taking the lead as entrepreneurs, innovators, and change-makers.

“Indeed, women are now leading in increasingly diverse fields, including renewable energy, creative industries and agritech-driven solutions, which are fueling the circular economy and focus on local supply chains and sustainability.

“The numbers are all the more to be celebrated since rural businesswomen still face a great number of challenges such as childcare, access to funding and distance to markets, requiring ongoing support and policy

innovation from enterprises such as Elevator.”

The Scottish Rural Leadership Programme is designed for business owners and senior leaders in rural industries across Scotland.

It is led by Scottish Enterprise in partnership with Highland and Islands Enterprise and South of Scotland Enterprise, and delivered

by Elevator.

It looks for people with ambition, capability and commitment to undergo industryleading training, including 10 days of workshops and learning journeys, as well as coaching and ongoing peer-to-peer support.

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It involves mentoring and networking with 800 likeminded rural leaders to help participants change their mindset with a view to driving growth and contributing to a sea change in the rural economy.

Rachel Ross, who was a board member at Elevator, has extensive experience as an SME business owner and nonexecutive director. A well-known rural business advocate, Rachel owns the iconic Loch Melfort Hotel on Argyll’s West coast.

She is also a trustee of the Elevator Foundation, a Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Argyll and has held other senior industry positions including Board Director at Scotland Food and Drink and Director at leadership consultancy Peoplematters.

She added: “Supporting ideas, innovations, and ambitions, while helping SMEs seize transformational growth opportunities, has never been more vital than it is now.

“It is essential that we continue to work closely with Scottish businesses, supporting new opportunities for collaboration and building on successful partnerships to create a sustainable pipeline to benefit Scotland’s long-term economic development.”

Welcome to The Royal Highland Show 2025

James Logan Chairman of the Royal & Highland Agricultural Society of Scotland

It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to the Royal Highland Show 2025 – a four-day celebration of Scotland’s rich agricultural heritage, our vibrant rural communities, and the extraordinary people who drive this vital sector forward and make it such a vibrant place to work.

As Chairman of the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland (RHASS), it’s truly rewarding to see months of hard work and planning come to life across the four-day event. Every person who walks through our gates is part of something very special – the largest outdoor event in Scotland and our charity’s biggest annual fundraiser.

This year, we are proud to celebrate the Year of Education and Learning, placing skills, knowledge, and innovation front and centre throughout the Show. From showcasing apprenticeships and championing lifelong learning within the sector to educating the wider public about the importance of agriculture, education is woven through every element of this year’s programme. We’re also delighted to shine a spotlight on ground-breaking progress within the industry through the newly refreshed RHASS Innovation Awards – the longest-running competition of its kind. For 2025, the awards see the introduction of dedicated categories, allowing us to better recognise advancements across all areas of the rural sector including Mechanical and Engineering, Digital and Management Solutions, and Crop and Animal Feed Advancement – all celebrating the trail-blazing ideas shaping the future of farming.

The Royal Highland Show is a unique showcase, and shows the breadth and depth of the rural sector. Whether it’s livestock and equine excellence, pole-climbing and axe-throwing, or local food and drink in Scotland’s Larder and the Food for Thought Theatre. There’s something for everyone. Don’t miss the opportunity to browse our diverse tradestands – from cutting-edge machinery and renewable tech to handmade crafts, fashion, and outdoor living.

Families are at the heart of the Show. At the RHET Discovery Centre, children can explore everything from robotic milking and fishing facts to peatlands and butter-making. Elsewhere, our Kid Zone and wellness and chill-out area ensure there’s space for both fun and relaxation.

In celebration of RHET’s Year of Dairy, which shines a spotlight on one of Scotland’s most important and dynamic sectors, from championship competitions in milk, cream, butter, cheese and Scottish ice cream, we have teamed up with RHET to host two design compeitions for Scotland’s primary and secondary pupils to design a rosette and milk bottle, with the winning designs shown and presented at this year’s Show.

The Royal Highland Show also offers something rare – a chance for our rural community to come together in person. With over 220,000 visitors through the gates last year, the site temporarily becomes the sixth largest population in Scotland, bigger than Paisley or Dunfermline! It’s a powerful reminder of the strength, spirit, and scale of our sector, and a chance to meet friends from far and wide.

More than a Show, this is a platform for progress. The business done here, the connections made, and the stories shared play a vital role in shaping Scotland’s rural economy. And at its heart is RHASS’s enduring commitment to our members and the wider industry: to preserve our agricultural legacy and support the next generation of farmers, rural businesses, and communities.

We hope you enjoy everything the Show has to offer – and of course, don’t miss the Royal Highland Hoolie, a brilliant way to round off your day with a tune and a boogie.

Thank you for your continued support, and have a fantastic Royal Highland Show 2025!

Warmest regards, James Logan. www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com

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Royal Highland Show 2025

The Royal Highland Show There truly is something for everyone at Scotland’s largest outdoor event

The 2025 Royal Highland Show is set to surprise and delight show-goers yet again.

The Royal Highland Show, produced by Scotland’s agricultural charity, RHASS (Royal Highland & Agricultural Society of Scotland) is, promising an unforgettable event for all attendees in it’s 203rd year.

For the foodies: Stuffed full of food and drink, the show offers boundless opportunities to sample Scotland’s finest produce including cookery demos with top chefs and a huge choice of food vendors serving everything to satisfy anyone palate.

For families: A key attraction for families, the RHET Discovery Centre is the perfect entertaining and educational base for younger visitors to the show. With a dedicated kid zone located in the Countryside Area, there is plenty of fun for all the family to enjoy including hands on skills training.

For the shopaholic: For the avid shoppers, a vast range of

retail opportunities await spread across numerous shopping villages, offering clothing, shoes, crafts, gifts, pet supplies, art, toys and a range of premium shopping outlets which can be found at the Countryside Village. Event attendees also might be surprised to find the Renewable Village, offering a variety of sustainable products and services including

wind, solar, hydroelectric, geothermal, tidal, biomass companies and more.

For the thrill seekers: Delivering the action and drama, sparks will fly in the heat of Farriery competition, equine entrants will be saddled up for show jumping, meanwhile, over in the forestry arena, visitors will be on the edge of their seats

as they are entertained by axe throwers, live chainsaw carving, and pole climbers.

For the traditionalists: The many traditional aspects of the show will continue to provide weekend-long entertainment.

Watch as the country’s top shearers battle it out for the esteemed title of Scottish National Champion or head to the main ring to see the Heavy Horse Turnouts. The spectacle of the Sixes taking place on Sunday is another one not to be missed.

For music lovers: The line-up is not to be missed.

Supported by the Royal Bank of Scotland, the 2025 Royal Highland Show will take place across four days at the Royal Highland Centre, Ingliston, Edinburgh, from 19th – 22nd June, promising an unforgettable experience for attendees of all ages. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit https://www.royalhighlandshow. org

The A-Z of the Royal Highland Show 2025 A – Agricultural equipment – See the fantastic display of farm machinery and take the opportunity to visit the stands – the Agri Innovation Arena is a must-visit.

B – Beer – Enjoy a pint from the Royal Highland Show’s brewery partner and principal beer supplier, Innis & Gunn.

C – Countryside – Set by its own lochan, the Countryside Arena is home to exciting demonstrations, and canoeing.

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D – Dairy – This year RHET (Royal Highland Education Trust) celebrates the Year of Dairy — with showcase of championships in Milk, Cream, Scottish Ice Cream, Cheese, and Butter, all celebrating the very best of Scotland’s dairy excellence.

E – Equestrian - The Show always welcomes an impressive range of horse breeds, from the adorable Shetland Pony to the majestic Clydesdale.

F – Food – Explore hundreds of food and drink brands in Scotland’s Larder, enjoy live cookery demos from top chefs in the Food for Thought Theatre nestled within it, and take your pick from a huge range of delicious food stands.

G – Grand Parade – enjoy a spectacular display of the country’s best livestock as a parade of prize-winning cattle make their way across the main ring.

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H – Highland Cattle – Witness one of Scotland’s most iconic animals, the gorgeous Highland Coo, up close and in the flesh!

I – Innovation – Discover the latest trail-blazing agriinnovations as the Innovation Awards winners are crowned at the Show. New categories for this year include mechanical and engineering, digital and management solutions, and crop and animal feed advancement.

Royal Highland Show 2025 J – Judges – The Show attracts some of the top judges from across the world to judge livestock, food and drink and much more.

K – Kids go free – with plenty of entertainment for the little ones including a dedicated Kid Zone, Kids aged 15 and under go free when accompanied by an adult.

L – Logs - Make sure to visit the Forestry Arena, which is home to the Scottish Pole Climbing Championships along with action-packed axe throwing and wood carving demonstrations.

M – Music - the Show caters for all musical tastes, you could be disco dancing one minute, doing a ceilidh the next, before enjoying a traditional Scottish pipe band later on.

Don’t forget to buy your ticket to the Royal Highland Hoolie to get your live folk and country music fix!

N – New – New to the show this year - Mini Rovers! Running alongside the Land Rover Experience, kids can get behind the wheel and take on their very own off-road adventure course, just like the grown-ups.

O – Online - Get all the latest up-to-date information on the Show on the official Royal Highland Show app, website and social media channels for the latest updates.

P – Produce – You will find plenty of locally produced and ethically sourced food served at the Show – from delicious haggis neeps and tatties to freshly prepared fish and chips and lobster rolls, finished off with a bowl of Scottish strawberries bursting with flavour.

Q - Queen Bee – Find out all you need to know about honey and the importance of bees in the Show’s Honey Marquee by the West Entrance, and don’t miss the prize giving at the Honey Championships!

R – Rural Life – celebrate the traditions, skills, and communities at the heart of Scotland’s countryside, from working sheepdog demos and traditional crafts to the people and businesses who make rural Scotland thrive.

S – Shopping – A vast range of retail opportunities await spread across numerous shopping villages where you can find clothing, shoes, crafts,

gifts, pet supplies, art, toys and much more.

T – Trials – The BMX riders will have you on the edge of your seat with their stunt displays in the Forestry Arena.

U – Unwind – The Show is the perfect place to catch up with friends, enjoy a good day out..

V – Variety – Cattle and sheep, farriery at The Forge, showjumping, heavy horse turnouts, ceilidh bands, choirs, shopping, artisanal food and drink, a ride on the big top – there’s SO much to see and do.

W – Wool – Always a highlight, the MacRobert Theatre provides some of the fastest action of the

Scotland’s Larder Scotland’s Larder is a must-see destination for all Foodies and a great place to meet local producers, taste the best of Scottish produce and discover artisan offerings from across the UK. Browse aisles full of delicacies to find everything from Scotland’s juicy strawberries and varied cheeses to full bodied Whiskies and fruity Gins. Why not take the opportunity to speak with the makers and hear how they got started first-hand!

The Food for Thought Cookery Theatre, within Scotland’s Larder, is full of entertaining cookery demonstrations from award-winning chefs, alongside conversations and Q&As with food writers, cooks and producers.

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show at the Sheep Shearing and Woolhandling competition.

X – Xcitement - There’s plenty of excitement at the Show – make sure you get your programme so you don’t miss out on a single thing!

Y – Youth – The RHET Discovery Centre is home to activities and exhibits designed to engage young minds. Pay it a visit if you have little ones in tow!

Z – Zones - To make the most of your visit we want to ensure you can get around the site easily. Watch out for the coloured zones on your map and RHS App to help guide you around.

Royal Highland Show 2025

2025 RHASS Innovation Awards The RHASS (the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland) Innovation Awards are the oldest competition run by RHASS, and the 2025 awards will be taking a fresh approach with a name change and the introduction of categories.

Previously known as the RHASS Technical Innovation Awards, the name of the awards has been revised in an effort to broaden the scope of the competition beyond technology. The introduction of different categories will also allow the awards to highlight trail-blazing innovations across all sectors within the industry. These categories include; mechanical and engineering, digital and management solutions, and crop and animal feed advancement.

Last year’s winners included AgXeed B.V. & SoilEssentials

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Ltd., who received a Silver award for their AgBot Autonomous Tractor, a fully autonomous solution that boosts efficiency and supports precision farming.

ILivestock also earned a Silver award for their platform that integrates software and hardware to streamline data capture, helping livestock farmers improve productivity and sustainability. Silver Awards are the highest accolade that can be achieved for a first submission of an innovation.

Katy McFadyen, Competitions Executive at RHASS, said: “The Innovation Awards are one of our longest running competitions at RHASS. Since their inception, they have recognised amazingly talented individuals and innovations that have been pivotal to the progression and future of

Scotland’s Agricultural Industry and have helped to advance technology and the way the industry operates on a daily basis.

“In acknowledgement of the broad range of innovations present across the sector, the 2025 awards will have a range of categories to allow for a fairer assessment from the judges, so that each innovation can be evaluated fairly based on criteria relevant to its functions.

This will include mechanical and engineering, digital and management solutions, and crop and animal feed advancement.”

The new Innovation Award categories are: • Mechanical and Engineering Advancements (Machinery, Robotics and Automatic Solutions)

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• Digital and Management Solutions (IT and Computing solutions & Livestock and Arable management. Can include but not limited to Apps, Electronics, GPS Software, Farm Software, Livestock and Arable Management) • Crop and Animal Feed Advancement (Chemical or technical advancement within crop production or animal feeds. To include advancement of breeding programmes or innovation to arable crops during their production cycle and enhancement to animal nutrition) Seonaid Ross, Marketing Manager for SoilEssentials Ltd, and winner of the 2024 Silver award for their AgBot Autonomous Tractor, said: “The

Royal Highland Show 2025 Royal Highland Show is an unrivalled platform to showcase the latest sector technology, not only with prospective customers but to help inform discussions around where agtech is going. It’s wonderful to see such an appetite

from farmers and the wider industry. Since last year’s Show, our autonomous tractor has been demonstrating and showcasing its capabilities through a range of field tasks with a variety of implements across different

terrains across the country, and currently on hire to a customer.

Our success in the RHASS Technical Innovation Awards has most definitely helped encourage conversations and bring this technology to the fore – it’s no

longer a future concept – AgBots are here, available to buy or hire and fit neatly to enhance farming businesses, today. We look forward to submitting for these awards again in the future - who knows what will be next!”

Judges for Royal Highland Show 2025 Judging livestock at the Royal Highland Show is a prestigious honour, and the 2025 lineup features some of the most respected names in the industry.

This year’s judges bring a wealth of expertise and knowledge across all categories.

Kay Adam, RHASS Director said: “Our judges are integral to the competitions that take place

at the Show. With impeccably high standards, they set a president for the very best in the sector. Those who walk away with a prize know they are meeting and exceeding our judges’ criteria and really are true leaders in their field. We can’t wait to welcome our new judges at next year’s Show to continue the Royal Highland’s great tradition of hosting some of the most

prestigious livestock and equine competitions in Europe.”

Jenny Hurst, judge of the Lincoln Red Cattle for the 2025 Royal Highland Show said: “It’s an honour to be invited to judge at the Royal Highland Show, one of the UK’s most prestigious agricultural events. The competition always reflects the dedication, expertise, and passion of exhibitors from

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across the country, and I’m looking forward to seeing the very best of livestock and produce on display.

The Royal Highland Show is a true celebration of excellence, and I’m delighted to play a role in this iconic showcase.”

Overall Young Handler The choice of judges for the Dalchirla Trophy for Overall

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Royal Highland Show 2025 Young Handler rotates to a different section every year, and this year the task falls upon the goat section with Mr Gordon Smith and Ms Beth Fairley judging.

Beef Section The Interbreed Team Competition and Overall Beef Interbreed Championship, two of the most prestigious and eagerly awaited classes of the event, will be judged by Mr John Jeffrey. With 30 years of judging experience, former Scottish rugby internationalist and Grand Slam winner John has judged at all Royal Shows, been involved with the Charolais and Simmental breeds, and received an honorary fellowship from The Moredun Foundation in recognition of his achievements.

Judging the Native Interbreed Team Championship will be Mr John Scott. With over 30 years of judging experience, John has been deeply involved with numerous livestock breeds, including Beef Shorthorn, Luing, Texel, and Beltex, and boasts significant achievements such as serving as the current Chair of the Beef Shorthorn Cattle Society and the first Chairperson of Beltex Scotland.

Mr Mike Massie, who brings 30 years of judging expertise, will oversee the Beef Inter-Breed Pairs Competition. Mike has judged Charolais and Limousin cattle at many shows and is a two-time overall supreme champion winner at both Perth and Stirling Bull Sales.

Lincoln Red’s will be judged

by Mrs Jenny Hurst who has 30 years of judging experience and has made a significant mark as a past President of the Lincoln Red Society, with her herd winning multiple breed championships and the first British Blue to take a major interbreed title at the Great Yorkshire in 2015.

With over 20 years of judging experience, Mr Jonathon Watson will be judging the Beef Breeder Competition and Junior Beef Inter-Breed Championship. Specialising in Limousin, Charolais, and British Blue cattle, along with Suffolk, 38

Texel, and Beltex sheep, he has judged at renowned shows like the Royal Welsh and Balmoral Show.

Beef Shorthorn will be judged by Mr Geoff Riby, who has 40 years of judging experience including the Royal Show, Royal Highland, Royal Bath and West, Three Counties and Great Yorkshire.

Mr Neil Wattie will draw on his 30 years of judging experience to judge the Aberdeen Angus class.

Mortimers Farm Manager Mr Charlie MacLean will judge the Highland cattle. His 30 years of judging experience include judging overseas in Germany, as well as Oban Bull Sales, Royal Norfolk and Royal Welsh.

Mr Andrew Clark will judge the British Simmentals. Mr Clark represented the UK as part of a youth judging team at Canadian Western Agribition, has won the overall winner and reserve overall winner of the British Simmental young stock judging competition twice each, and has judged at agricultural shows across England, Northern Ireland, and Republic of Ireland.

Dairy Section Mr Ashley Fleming will oversee the Overall Dairy Interbreed in 2025. His 30-plus years of judging experience includes New Zealand Dairy Show and Space Show in France and his own Jersey cattle have won 31 breed champions and 11 Interbreed Champions at the Balmoral Show up to 2023.

Determining the winner of Red and White, Jersey, and Dairy Any Other Breed, is Mr Gavin Baillie of Stonehouse, Lanarkshire. With 30 years judging experience, he has judged at Royal Melbourne and Merry Bridge Australia.

Mr Brian Weatherup (Snr) of Crossgates, Fife will judge the Holstein classes. His 40 plus years of judging include the Royal Welsh, and many other shows throughout the UK and Ireland.

Sheep Section Caithness cattle and sheep farmer, and former RHASS Director Mr www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com

Royal Highland Show 2025 Kenneth Sutherland will judge the Overall Sheep Inter Breed Championship. Mr Sutherland held NSA Highland Sheep at his farm Sibmister in 2019.

The Overall Sheep Pairs Inter-Breed Championship will be judged by Mr James Thompson. With an impressive 40 years of judging experience, Mr Thompson has judged at multiple big shows including the Royal Welsh, Balmoral, The Royal Show and Black Isle and was presented with the “Sir William Young” Award together with son William Thomson for their contribution to livestock breeding within Scotland.

Judging the Blackface section is Mr Archie MacGregor who has 46 years judging experience and has been Blackface champion three times at the Royal Highland Show and champion at the national show.

Mr John Gibb will judge the Suffolk section. With 20 years of

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judging experience, he holds the Scottish Record for the top price Suffolk ram lamb.

Miss Issy Hartley will judge the Blue Texel. Issy has been breeding Blue Texels for 10 years and has been successful in the Show and sales ring. Her sheep showing career started in 2004 with Zwartbles.

The Valais Blacknose section will be judged by Jamie Wood who has judged Valais Blacknose all over the UK and in 2023 judged two shows in America in New Jersey and Iowa. Jamie was one of the first to import the Valais Blacknose breed to the UK and is Current Vice Chairman of The Valais Blacknose Society.

The Kerry Hills will be judged by Mr Sion Jones who has 14 years of judging experience and has judged at the Royal Welsh and Great Yorkshire. Sion is this year’s president of the Kerry Hill Breed Society.

Mr John Donovan will judge the Ryeland section. Along with his wife Suzanne, Mr Donovan has kept and exhibited Ryeland and Coloured Ryeland Sheep for over 30 years and has judged at shows such as the Royal Welsh, Royal Three Counties, Royal Cornwall, Royal Norfolk, and Ryeland Society National Show.

The North Country Cheviots will be judged by Mr Roderick Runciman. He has judged at Royal Cornwall, Great Yorkshire, Royal Norfolk, Balmoral and the Royal Welsh and has won the Royal Highland Show several times with North Country Cheviot Park, Hill, Commercial and Scotch part bred.

The Charollais section will be judged by Mr Dewi Evans who has 32 years of judging experience including at the Southern Ireland Premier show and sale in Blessington in 2022.

Goat Section The Scottish Dairy Goat Show

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will be judged by Mr Marcus Galbraith who has 14 years judging experience and is a seven time Champion at The Balmoral Show. He has judged across England, Scotland and Ireland.

Heavy Horse Section Miss Irene Spence is returning to the Royal Highland Show to judge The Sanderson Trophy having previously judged the Shetland Ponies in 2015 and the Royal Highland Showcase in 2021. Miss Spence has also been a steward at the show since 2005 in addition to showing Standard Shetlands in the In Hand Classes for a number of years.

Mr Scott Greenhill will judge the Clydesdales In Hand (Males).

Born into Clydesdales on both sides of the family with history back to the 1800s, Scott has been showing independently since the age of 15. He has won overall champion at the Great Yorkshire

Royal Highland Show 2025 Show, as well as winning many local championships.

Ridden Clydesdales (Ride) will be judged by Ms Jo Callwood who has 10 years judging experience including at major county shows such as The Royal International Horse Show. Ms Callwood won the Royal International as well as the Horse of The Year Show in both Mountain and Moorland and on Horses.

Highland Ponies In Hand (Females) will be judged by Mrs Audrey Barron who has 19 years of judging experience and has been involved with Highlands, Icelandic Horses, and Scottish Sports Horses. Her childhood pony who she started riding when she was three started her lifelong passion for the breed.

Miniature Shetland Ponies In Hand will be judged by Miss D Johnston who has had Miniature Shetlands in her family for almost 70 years and could ride before she could walk. She

judged at the Czech Republic National Show in 2014.

Harness, Grooming, Turnouts The Heavy Horse Turnouts & Clydesdales in Hand (Females) will be judged by Mr Robert A Detweiler who has 40 years judging experience and over 60 years’ experience in breeding, fitting, grooming, training, driving, showing and competing.

He has competed with Belgians, Percherons and Clydesdale Horses. Robert spent 11 years as the lead driver of the Budweiser Clydesdales on the East Coach Hitch, highlighted by a residency in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia and a tour with a four-horse hitch to Tokyo, Japan.

Private Driving Mrs Heather Noad will judge the Private Driving and Pleasure Driving. With 27 years on the BDS Judging Panel, Mrs Noad is the Current Chairman of the BDS Judges Committee that

oversees the training, selection and continuing the professional development of the panel of judges and has judged at all the Royal Shows, BDS Championships and HOYS. Light Horse Section Mr Phillip Hilton is judging the Overall Light Horse in Hand in addition to the Intermediate Show Riding Type, Show Ponies, Lead Rein and First Ridden Show Pony. He has 25 years judging experience and has judged at many prestigious shows including HOYS and the Royal International three times.

The Mountain and Moorland Ponies Under Saddle Large Breeds (Ride) will be judged by Mrs Heather Prescott who has 40 years judging experience. She has had a very successful showing career and has won many places including Olympia, HOYS, the Royal Highland and many more.

Coloured Horses and Ponies Under Saddle (Ride) will be

judged by Mr David Bennett who qualifies several horses for Royal International and HOYS each year. He has been involved with Thoroughbreds, Coloureds, Hunters and Cobs over the years and met the Queen after judging at the Royal Windsor Horse Show.

Welsh Mountain Ponies (Section A) will be judged by Mr Rhydian Davies. Mr Davies has been on the WPCS Judging Panel since 2007, has judged internationally including Australia and America, and has won the Royal Welsh Show on three occasions including the male champion in 2002.

Welsh Ponies (Section B), Part Bred Welsh, Mountain and Moorland Lead Rein and First Ridden Ponies (Conformation), and Mountain and Moorland Ponies Under Saddle Small Breeds (Ride) will be judged

by Miss Kerry Wainwright.

Miss Wainwright has judged in Australia, South Africa and France, as well as at numerous

Royal Highland Show 2025 royal shows in the UK. She has also been champion at The Royal Welsh, HOYS, Connemara Breed Show and had winners and champions at The Royal International.

Overall Mountain and Moorland In Hand, Mountain and Moorland Lead Rein and First Ridden Ponies (Ride) and Mountain and Moorland Ponies Under Saddle Small Breeds (Conformation) will be judged by Mrs Gill Simpson. Her 35 years judging experience has seen her judge at shows including The Great Yorkshire, The Royal Norfolk and The Royal Cheshire County.

Mrs Cheryl Frith will judge the Mountain and Moorland Working Hunter Ponies and the Junior Mountain and Moorland Ridden Conformation. Mrs Frith has more than 40 years of judging experience, including in Australia, France, Denmark and Ireland as well as many shows un the UK, and has been a Royal Highland.

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Livestock and competitions Competitors are competing in the following sections: * Beef Cattle

* Dairy Cattle * Sheep * Goats

* Heavy Horse * Light Horse * Farriery

* Shearing * Fleece

* Scottish Honey Championship * Scottish Dairy Products Championship * Scottish Handcrafts Championship

Catriona Brown, Competitions Manager at RHASS, said: “As

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part of our ongoing efforts to improve the Show experience

Royal Highland Show 2025 for regular event attendees while ensuring new audiences have a great experience, this year we’ve made significant updates to the Main Ring judging schedule.

These changes have been carefully planned to enhance the flow of events and maximise the use of the prestigious space for both exhibitors and spectators.

“The new entry system is a userfriendly and efficient platform already used at many agricultural events across the UK so many competitors will already be familiar with how it works.

Following the successful milk and cream competition debut in 2024, which saw an impressive 30 entries received, it is hoped there will be even more interest in 2025.

Show organisers are closely monitoring the evolving Bluetongue situation, working in partnership with APHA to ensure the health and wellbeing of all livestock and exhibitors.

With movement restrictions subject to change, RHASS has set out a clear policy in line with Government guidance to provide certainty for those entering the Show “We are taking all necessary steps to ensure a safe and successful event,” Catriona added.

“The Royal Highland Show is a showcase of the very best livestock and produce from across the country. We are very much looking forward to another year of outstanding entries and wish all competitors the best of luck.”

The Equine Arena The Royal Highland Show is a highlight in Scotland’s agricultural calendar, and attracts many equine enthusiasts each year. The event showcases a diverse range of equine competitions,

including Heavy Horse classes featuring Clydesdales, Highlands, Shetlands and Miniature Shetlands as well as Light Horse classes and Showjumping events.

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The Heavy Horse Section at the Royal Highland Show is renowned for its impressive turnout classes each day in the main ring, drawing large crowds to view the impressive horse and

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Royal Highland Show 2025 carts, with up to 6 horses per cart in some classes. The heavy horse section consists of Clydesdales, Highlands, Shetlands and Miniature Shetlands. These are all shown on Thursday morning in the main ring, and can be viewed by the public all week in the heavy horse stabling area.

The Light Horse section at the show offers a variety of classes over the four days across three rings, the main ring, jubilee ring and the thistle ring.

Classes range from In Hand Classes, to ridden classes as well as Working Hunter classes for both ponies and Horses. The light horse classes at the Royal Highland Show bring many top class horses and ponies to the

showground each year, as they compete for prestigious titles across the four days.

Showjumping at the Royal Highland Show, hosts some thrilling classes, with many professionals travelling to compete each year. Classes in the Main ring include the Grand Prix, The International Stairway and the Young Masters, and this draws crowds each year to enjoy the action packed classes. The junior classes on the Sunday of the show is always a crowd pleaser, with many of the up and coming showjumpers showing there skills and class throughout the day.

The Royal Highland Show hosts 57 Horse of The Year Show

Qualifiers across light horse and heavy horse classes, qualifying them to compete at HOYS in October. HOYS is the pinnacle in

many peoples showing calendar, so the best quality horses and ponies are aiming to qualify each year.

RHASS Presidential Initiative Raises Over £137,000 for Rural Charities The Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland (RHASS) Strathclyde Presidential Initiative charity dinner, held on Friday, 21 March, has been hailed a tremendous success, raising an outstanding £137,000 for vital rural charities.

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The event, hosted at the spectacular Donald Malcolm Heritage Centre in Linwood, brought together over 400 guests for an evening of celebration and generosity, with funds set to benefit the Scottish Association of Young Farmers

Clubs’ (SAYFC) Big Build, the Royal Highland Education Trust (RHET), RSABI, and FarmstrongScotland.

The highlight of the evening was an exceptional silent and live auction, which raised nearly £90,000 thanks to the incredible

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support of the agricultural community. A total of 78 local businesses donated auction prizes, with the 12 live auction items alone raising £51,000.

The star of the night was a cask of Kilchoman whisky, which fetched an impressive £9,000.

The event’s success was made possible through the generosity of key sponsors, including Diageo, Dunbia Highland Meats, Parks Motor Group, Malcolm Group, and Loch Fyne.

In addition, 40 local agricultural businesses sponsored tables and entertainment, further contributing to the evening’s success.

The (RHASS) Presidential Initiative, headed up by President George Lyon, Vice Presidents; Margo McGill Scott, Andrew Malcolm, Rob Wainwright, Lord George Robertson and Chaplain Isabell Montgomerie extended their gratitude to all those who contributed to the evening.

George Lyon, RHASS President, said: “The charity dinner was a stunning success with over £137,000 raised for our partner

Royal Highland Show 2025 agriculture charities. None of this would have been possible without the overwhelming generosity of the local agriculture businesses and organisations who supported us with prizes and sponsorship.

“I would also like to say a big thank you to our major sponsors, Diageo who supplied the drinks and fantastic prizes; Dunbia Highland Meats who supplied the beautiful tender Angus steaks and Parks Motor group who supplied the luxury cars for the golf prizes.

“A special mention to Andrew Malcolm who provided the spectacular and unique venue which made the night so unforgettable for our guests.”

This charity dinner was one of four flagship events hosted by the Strathclyde 2025 RHASS Presidential Initiative, which will culminate at the 2025 Royal Highland Show. The initiative showcases how agriculture

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continues to drive innovation and sustainability, supporting Scotland’s rural economy.

Throughout their tenure, the team has used its year as

a platform to showcase how agriculture is leading the way in developing new solutions to support Scotland’s journey to net zero.

For more information on the RHASS Presidential Initiative and its ongoing fundraising efforts, visit https://rhass.org.uk/ about-us/presidential-initiative/

Education for new careers in agriculture The very best of Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC) will again be showcased at this year’s Royal Highland Show.

The stand’s theme of Growth reflects the successes of the institution over the past year, including the achievement of Taught Degree Awarding Powers and the launch of its School of Veterinary Medicine and Biosciences. In another exciting development SRUC’s new School of Natural and Social

Sciences will launch at this year’s event.

Activities and exhibits to look out for at Stand 177 include an Alumni Farmers’ Market (Saturday 21 June only), a welding simulator, and a chance to find out about SRUC’s new Vertical Farming Innovation Centre.

Visitors will also be able to speak to experts from SAC Consulting for in-depth advice, while children will be entertained with Lego building and ‘Hook

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a Hilda’ - a variation of the wellknown fairground game starring SRUC’s world-famous dairy calf.

Farm and Water Scotland and the Farm Advisory Service will also be on the stand, along with SRUC’s Marketing and Student Recruitment team, who will be on hand to help prospective students choose their perfect subject.

More information will be available in due course. Stay up to date by signing up to SRUC’s monthly newsletter at www.sruc.ac.uk.

Royal Highland Show 2025

The Scottish Beekeepers Association (SBA) have a full honey tent planned for this year at the West Gate, with the usual honey, wax, honey baking and associated bee product entries.

Scottish honey commands premium prices due to its high quality. Shop prices of £12 per pound for blossom honey and £15 for heather are not unusual.

A full cohort of SBA guide stewards to help answer questions that visitors may have about honeybees and other pollinators are being recruited and as usual the bees will be there, flying from their glass sided observation hives. Hopefully it will be warm and sunny, and we will be able to observe their dance language routines as they tell their colleagues where the best nectar sources are around Ingliston. The honeybees

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Feel the buzz!

are capable of informing their sisters, via their dances, of the precise geographic direction of the best sources of nectar and pollen (and of potentially interesting swarm destinations).

We will again have young beekeepers explaining beekeeping to the schoolchildren and as young children regard older children as the best sources of cool information there will be rapt attention being paid to the explanations of how bees carry out their pollination and other duties. In addition to the bee product entries, we will have entries for photos on beekeeping subjects.

As usual the shop will be selling delicious local honeys and other bee products.

The artisan sections will be showing demonstrations of skep

making (ruskies for the Scot’s speakers). We also hope to have wax moulding demos and of course for the children the ever-popular candle rolling and honey tasting.

The Scottish rural college (SRUC) will be represented in the tent and

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always has good information on bee health and other subjects.

The Royal Highland Education Trust (RHET) is arranging school visits to the honey tent on Thursday and Friday and we look forward to meeting some of the school

Royal Highland Show 2025 children who always show a keen interest in the bees.

The Scottish Education Qualifications body now has a N5 qualification in beekeeping on offer which can be taken up by schools and colleges, based on the SBA’s Basic Beekeeping syllabus and many Scottish schools have chosen to offer this course, having trained teachers in beekeeping, and have set up their own small apiary run by a school bee club.

There has been a welcome increase in the interest in bees from the farming community and a great willingness to improve the lot of pollinators by leaving wild margins around fields. We are very interested to hear from farmers.

Honeybees provide a pollinating service for farmers growing Canola (edible oil seed rape) and although Canola is a wind pollinated crop, the bees can help finish off the pollination more quickly allowing the plant to switch to putting all its energy

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into seed production rather than green growth. This is reckoned to increase yield by 10 to 15%.

However, some of the new varieties of Canola seem to be less attractive to the bees and it would be interesting to hear from growers whether their crops were being visited by bees. Climate change may also be affecting the behaviour of the plant. Canola has tricks up its sleeve when it is faced with drought – it produces a waxy coating on the stalks to prevent loss of water by evaporation and it can also reduce the amount of nectar it is yielding.

Anyone with a small piece of land that can be made stock-proof would be of interest to beekeepers looking for an apiary site – you would get a jar or two of honey in return.

If you have thought of starting beekeeping, locate your local beekeeping association (there are about 45 in Scotland) and join one of the beginners’ classes – two

hours, one day a week for 6 or 7 weeks will gain you sufficient knowledge to start keeping bees.

See the map at https://www. scottishbeekeepers.org.uk/about/ affiliated- beekeeping-associations The bees have simple needs – “give us plenty of flowers, as free of man-made chemicals as possible”. Bees don’t have a word for weeds, if it flowers, they’re interested. We should also remember that our largest flower

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sources are the hardwood trees, so plenty of sycamores, chestnuts, hawthorns, and limes are good.

And let us not forget, we love a white clover. Bees have become very interested in the new crops of Phacelia and Borage which are appearing.

So please do visit the honey tent, located by the West Gate, you’ll be made most welcome. alan.riach@scottishbeekeepers. org.uk

Royal Highland Show 2025

Irish singing sensations lead the lineup for June’s Royal Highland Hoolie The line-up for this year’s Royal Highland Hoolie, which will see some of Scotland and Ireland’s liveliest musicians take to the stage, has been revealed, with folk and country acts set to entertain crowds across two nights in June as part of the Royal Highland Show.

Headlining on Friday 20th June is The Whistlin’ Donkeys, a lively six-piece Irish folk-rock band known for their electrifying live performances and modern twist on traditional tunes. They will be supported by Trail West, who are back by popular demand for this year, and will bring more of their energetic fusion of traditional West Coast folk music and fresh contemporary sound.

Mànran, a dynamic Scottish folk-rock band known for their powerful blend of traditional Gaelic music with modern rock and infectious energy will also take to the stage.

On Saturday 21st June, chart-topping Irish country star Nathan Carter will headline the night with his signature highenergy performance, bringing

a fresh twist to Irish country music. He will be joined by The Tumbling Paddies, who will entertain Hoolie-goers with a blend of traditional and modern sounds. More acts are set to be announced soon.

Mark Currie, Royal Highland Centre Director of Venue, said: “This is the third year of the Royal Highland Hoolie, and every year it just gets bigger and better. Set against the backdrop of one of Europe’s most prestigious agricultural shows, The Royal Highland Hoolie is a celebration of the fantastic homegrown talent produced by Scotland and Ireland. It’s an honour to welcome so many incredible folk and country music acts to the Royal Highland Centre, helping to create what we are sure will be a truly unforgettable weekend for both the agricultural community and music fans alike.

“A range of ticket options are available, including limited early bird offer on Hoolie only tickets, combined Royal Highland Show and Royal Highland Hoolie tickets, offering a discounted rate

for those wanting to experience both events. It’s going to be an incredible few nights!”

Ian Smith from Trail West, said: “We’re thrilled to be returning to perform at the Highland Hoolie for the second year running! The Highland Show is a big event in the calendar of many islanders so it’s great to be involved again.

“The energy of the crowd and the atmosphere of the event were incredible last year and it’s an honour be to part of another brilliant line-up. We’re looking

forward to hitting the stage at the Royal Highland Centre again on Friday 20th June.”

The Highland Hoolie is run in partnership with promoters Farmers Bash.

Farmers Bash organiser Nigel Campbell, said: “The talent joining us for this year’s Hoolie is truly outstanding. Audiences are in for a real treat! We can’t wait to see these musicians perform at the Royal Highland Centre for what promises to be another unforgettable weekend of live music.”

A look at some of this years exhibitors Albutt Attachments

Albutt Attachments have been a proud supplier of attachments to Scottish farmers for over 50 years. With over three decades of exhibiting at the show, family firm Albutt Attachments returns to greet established customers, welcome new ones and to share the firm’s knowledge and expertise, aspiring to meet the requirements of today’s modern Scottish farmer.

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Albutt Attachments is a family business, specialising in manufacturing high specification attachments for the Agricultural, Waste, Construction and Forestry industries. Durability, longevity and sustainability are the standout features of this brand in a competitive manufacturing market.

The company founder, Robert Albutt, began the firm over 50 years ago. The company’s roots are embedded in farming, with four generations of the Albutt family directly involved in agriculture.

Current managing director, Alistair Albutt, now employs 50 members

of staff at their Gloucestershire facility.

Albutt Attachments have grown to become one of the leading names in the global attachment market.

A prime example of their professional expertise is the 14foot, 2.2 tonne folding push off Buckrake. This is one of several impressive, practical and time saving attachments on display at the 2025 Royal Highland Show.

Albutt Attachments Buckrake ranges include forged steel tines, ideal for tractors and telehandlers in addition to the Hardox tine range for large tractors and wheeled loading shovels. Both ranges use

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an ergonomic design to create a high strength-to-weight ratio.

Large capacity flow share valves ensure an even push. The full mesh gates enable the operator to always have a clear view, complemented by work lights for those long working days.

Albutt Attachments are looking forward to displaying their products at this year’s Royal Highland Show and listening to the issues faced by farmers, dealers and the forestry sector, working with them to create solutions with the Albutt Attachment range.

Come and meet them at Avenue Q, stand 290A.

Royal Highland Show 2025 Amazone

Amazone to showcase new Cirrus Grand drill at RHS 2025 Amazone is heading to the Royal Highland Show 2025 with an impressive line-up of new machinery, including the all-new 8-9 metre Cirrus Grand trailed cultivator drill. Built for high output and precision, the Cirrus Grand is designed to offer large capacities at wide working widths without compromising on seed placement or crop establishment.

The new Cirrus Grand range includes both the 8004-2C and 9004-2C models, which feature a 5,750 litre twin tank hopper and the latest in Amazone seeding

technology. Thanks to its individual row shut-off system and the new segmented distribution head, the Cirrus Grand brings total overlaps down to below 1%. Each coulter’s shut-off timing is automatically adjusted to compensate for seed pipe length, ensuring pinpoint accuracy and minimal waste - ideal for farms aiming to reduce input costs while maximising output.

But that’s not all. Amazone will also be showcasing the lighterweight Teres 200 mounted plough, designed specifically for tractors up to 200 hp. Available with up to 5 furrows, the Teres 200 combines a robust build with easy adjustment and smooth handling in work - delivering top-tier ploughing performance in a more compact, versatile package.

Also making its debut is the ZATS 5000, Amazone’s latest 5,000 litre mounted fertiliser spreader, offering increased capacity for fewer refills and greater efficiency in the field.

Rounding out the line-up is the UF 02 mounted sprayer, now featuring ContourControl boom guidance. This intelligent system ensures boom stability and consistent spraying across uneven ground with positive and negative boom geometry - improving accuracy, reducing drift, and helping maximise the effectiveness of crop protection products.

Visit the Amazone stand to see these innovations up close and speak with our team about how they can support your farming operation.

Anglo Scottish Asset Finance

Anglo Scottish Asset Finance and NFU Scotland Finance, working together to support your business with NFU Scotland Finance!

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With the support of Anglo Scottish Asset Finance, who are providing the funding, NFU Scotland members are discovering new possibilities for their agricultural business with bespoke financial solutions, including agricultural loans, and asset finance options that helps their businesses to acquire equipment and technology, as well as refinancing solutions that can help businesses manage existing debts more effectively.

Not only is NFU Scotland Finance helping businesses with everyday businesses expenses, but also with new diversification and renewables projects, including bio-mass plants and solar installations, ensuring Scottish farmers are ready for future challenges.

“With asset and commercial finance, you have a flexible way to fund your needs, making it easy to get the machinery, vehicles, livestock, and technology you

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Royal Highland Show 2025 need without putting a strain on your budget. So, whether you are considering investing in brand-new equipment or opting for pre-owned alternatives, NFU Scotland Finance and Anglo Scottish are committed to providing the support and expertise you need to make informed financial decisions that will drive your business forward.”

Andrew Laird, Head of Agriculture, Food & Renewable Finance at Anglo Scottish.

BD Supplies

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This year BD Supplies is celebrating 25 years in business, specializing in Animal husbandry and Hoof trimming equipment.

We stock a comprehensive range of hoof trimming supplies, from knives and trimming discs to KVK and Appleton hoof trimming crates.

We are the sole importer for KVK in the UK and Ireland.

Their hoof trimming crates provide an optimum working posture to the trimmer and minimum discomfort to the livestock.

One of our best-selling products is our Professional Block Adhesive, developed

by BD Supplies, for use with wooden and rubber blocks.

We also offer our own range of rubber blocks.

Our wide range of animal husbandry equipment includes the Medi-Dart injection system, which is available as a pole or crossbow. These are ideal for

injecting cattle whilst they are out at grass, taking away the stress of bringing in a field of cattle when only one may need medication.

We are also proud suppliers of Rapid walk behind tractors, Graham Edwards Trailers & Welding Equipment, much of which will be showcased at the Royal Highland Show 2025.

With expansion into a thriving Biomass Wood Pellet delivery business, becoming fully BSL and Woodsure registered and offering both bagged and bulk deliveries into the domestic and commercial market.

Agriculture is still a huge part of our business and we are always looking at bringing new products to the UK market and promoting products which we feel have a benefit in the UK farming industry. We put our customers first and you can expect to receive the highest

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quality of customer service including next day delivery.

Bomford Turner

A leader in green maintenance technology for more than 100 years, Bomford Turner is recognised around the world for its high-performance Hedgecutters, Boom mowers, Remote controlled flail mowers and Cultivation Machinery.

Bomford Turner prides itself on quality and innovation delivering durable and productive machines that are a firm favourite with farmers, contractors and governmental departments.

KATTRAK INTERNATIONAL LTD SCOTTISH DISTRUBUTOR HOLP – ROTOP ATTACHMENTS & TOWMATE TRAILERS

Distribution, Sales, Hire Fleet, Service, Spares, Training Wheeled dumpers, tracked dumpers, excavators, telehandlers, special machinery Kattrak International Ltd is proud to be an official Scottish dealer & distributor for Sunward, Hidromek and Holp Rototop Attachments Kattrak offers a broad range of wheeled & tracked dumpers as well as other machinery for hire at competitive rates

Ardoch Farm, Old Glasgow Road, Kilwinning, KA13 7QJ Telephone: 01294 557835, fax: 01294 554095 E-mail: sales@kattrak.com or info@kattrak.com

Royal Highland Show 2025 Key products include: Reach arm boom mowers, Reach arm boom mower attachments, Remote controlled flail mowers, Flail mowers and rotary toppers, Forestry mulchers and Soil preparation machinery.

Bryce Post Drivers

As is the norm Bryce will be featuring upgrades to existing

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machines - plus the introduction of something different.

Over the years Bryce have won countless prestigious Awards for their post drivers, and now with a proven formula for high performance and durability, the focus is on producing post drivers that are as near bombproof as possible.

Like everything in agriculture nowadays, performance and output is the key to moving forward with efficiency. Good labour is scarce so getting more done in the shortest time with less man hours available is what it is all about. Jock says “today we have combines with 40 foot plus headers, tractors with horse power north of 600 pulling massive tillage and seeding equipment, and we have stock farmers needing livestock handling systems that allow high throughput of animals with speed, safety and efficiency, and that’s what we are doing

with Bryce post drivers.” Bryce have post drivers now that will drive strainers in hard ground in less than 60 seconds and press stobs in rather than hit them with multiple strokes of the hammer. Not only are these machines much quicker but they reduce wear and tear, as bigger hammers mean less strokes which of course means less wear.

The Bryce 180 PRO Mk2 one-man tracked fencing machine is proving hugely popular both at home and around the world.

Recent orders were received from Shetland, Cornwall, Australia and North America with strong reviews and consistent demand.

“Everyone is looking for ways of making the job easier - but only if it doesn’t give you grief” Jock adds. It’s easy in today’s hi-tech world to get sucked into electronics, but if theses break down in remote

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rural locations, fence erection and production immediately stops.

However, if a customer requests for example radio control, we discuss the pros and cons and deliver accordingly.

Our company policy is always to please the customer, and go along with any specific personal requests, but it must not jeopardise Bryce reliability or durability.

Bryce Post Drivers have a 2-year unconditional guarantee with 5-year guarantee on the main frame and post cap.

C-dax Systems

Royal Highland Show 2025 C-dax a New Zealand company started selling its products into the UK over 25 years ago, believing that the market in New Zealand was very much like that of the UK Market.

ATV City has been the distributor of C-dax products for around 18 years and have seen many ups and downs with regards to sales but more recently have seen a resurgence over the past few years.

ATV City put this down to the end user wanting more for their money, wanting quality, reliability, safety, longevity amongst the reasons why the end user has started to spend a little more to achieve what they are looking for in a product.

The Eliminator better known as a weed wiper is a product that has stood the test of time and are still working on many farms and small holdings across the UK and Ireland. The Eliminator comes in two sizes, 2.4m and 4.3m widths,

both units are galvanized. The Eliminator comes with a 50litre tank fitted on the top of the wiper.

The other main product ATV City sells in the C-dax range is the Spray rider, which is the safest sprayer to fit onto an ATV. It has been designed to spread the weight of the liquid it contains more evenly across the ATV. The Spray rider comes with an 80litre capacity. 10m of hose, adjustable hand lance, wiring and handle bar mounted switch. The design of the Spray rider is unique making the ATV safer to use on hilly and uneven terrain.

ATV City also offer a great range of ATV/UTV Sprayers/ Booms in the Fimco Brand, which will be displayed at the Royal Highland Show.

ATV City welcomes customers to come onto their stands at both the Royal Highland show and Royal Welsh Show to discuss the benefits of buying C-dax.

Dalbo

At DALBO we’re delighted to announce we have doubled our stand space for the Royal Highland Show this year. With the show being a key part of our year and Scotland being a very important and growing market, the opportunity to expand our stand came just at the right time. It coincides with the exciting announcement that DALBO UK has taken on the APV & BREVI range, and the Royal Highland Show will be a fantastic opportunity to showcase products from DALBO, APV and BREVI. APV’s range means we will be able to offer more products in the grassland rejuvenation

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and seeder technology. APV are the world leader of cover crop seeders and we are delighted to be able to offer the widest range of Pneumatic seeders on the market, with hopefully something to suit your specific needs.

Having also taken on our sister brand of BREVI, This will mean we are able to offer a solution for a wide range of power harrows and rotavators.

We will of course continue to focus on our key DALBO products, and once again at the show the increasingly popular 12.3m PowerRoll as well as our Maxiroll system roller will be on display.

DALBO has always been an innovative company as time after time it has launched market changing products.

DALBO takes great pride in being at the forefront of technology and the introduction the snowflake Cambridge ring

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Royal Highland Show 2025 was a typical example of this.

Offering the world market a 6 year guarantee on a Cambridge ring was unprecedented but the new snowflake design hasn’t disappointed.

We look forward to welcoming you onto our stand at the Royal Highland Show 2025.

DALBO - where originality matters.

Greencrop

Greencrop unveils revamped irrigation range with Smart Features.

Irrimec, a global leader in agricultural irrigation systems, has officially launched its

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newly updated range of hose reel irrigators in the UK—now smarter, more durable, and even easier to use. The upgraded ST6, ST7, and ELITE models offer tailored irrigation solutions to suit farms of every scale, combining reliable performance with advanced features.

Greencrop Irrigation, the exclusive UK importer for Irrimec, recently hosted a local training day at their Norfolk base to showcase the new machines.

The event brought together sales representatives for a hands-on introduction to the upgraded range, featuring both practical machine demonstrations and sales training tailored to the UK market.

Greencrop have also now released their new range of engine driven water pumps which includes the all new userfriendly irrigation control panel, which simplifies operation and setup. With a cleaner interface

and improved functionality, operators can manage their water more efficiently and with greater accuracy.

Also debuting is the new FPT Engine App, allowing users to wirelessly connect their smartphone to the machine’s engine for real-time data readouts. This includes engine performance, fuel usage, and diagnostics—providing smarter control and convenience straight from the field.

“We’re really proud to bring the updated Irrimec range to the UK, and it was great to get our sales team together in Norfolk to experience the improvements firsthand, the year by year improvements delivered by Irrimec has been a cornerstone in our business relationship. From little things like improving the turntable locks or strengthening the gun trolley frame to opening an avenue of supply to world leading irrigation booms, we

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have a full support package. said William Skea, Manager at Greencrop Irrigation. “The new control panel and engine app are big steps forward in usability, and we’re confident UK farmers will see the benefits immediately.”

GT Bunning and Sons

G T Bunning and Sons will return to the Royal Highland Show 2025, on the same larger stand as last year, displaying four manure spreaders suited to the varied Scottish market.

This will include a trio of Twin Vertical Auger (TVA) single axle machines, showcasing the flexibility of the range. The smallest spreader is

Royal Highland Show 2025 a Lowlander 75 MK4, which is suited to small farms and upland contractors requiring a machine with modest dimensions to access tight gateways and yards.

The Lowlander 75 has a carrying capacity of 9.5t and features the same robust build quality as the larger models in Bunning’s range.

Two Lowlander 120 spreaders will be on the stand, one is a TVA design and the other as the sole horizontal beater and spinning disc (HBD) machine on display. The Lowlander 120 HBD is capable of driving spread widths up to 24m, while the Lowlander 120 TVA is a Hybrid machine, offering increased output and improved material shredding compared with standard TVA models.

The Hybrid option uses the Widebody beater design, increasing beater width to 1,830mm (standard is 1,500mm wide) and includes the large diameter bottom blades. The increased width of the beaters improves the flow of some products at high rates as there is

no width limitation as it passes into the beaters.

Furthermore, the Lowlander 120 Hybrid TVA spreader will be fitted with weigh cells. All Bunning spreaders, in both TVA and HBD design, can be built weigh cell ready, with an optional Isobus rate controller system to improve application accuracy, allowing monitoring and live rate adjustment.

The final model on stand is a Lowlander 105 TVA, with all models built in the UK at Bunning’s modern Norfolk factory and sold with a threeyear warranty as standard.

Harry West

West Maelstrom Rear Discharge Spreadersfrom Harry West (Prees) Ltd Built to a high specification and capable of achieving spread

widths of up to 12M (40ft), the West Rear Discharge unit is particularly suited for farmyard manure. Fitted with an optional hydraulic rear door it can also be used with poultry muck and semi-solids.

The twin rear vertical beaters operate at a powerful 400 rpm from the PTO input drive of 1000 rpm. For trouble free maintenance the rear beaters are fitted with replaceable blades and feature a protected two-piece drive-line with a wide angle PTO c/w slip clutch.

The rear discharge machine has large diameter tyres (580/70R38) to minimise any ground pressure and is fully equipped for road use with standard hydraulic brakes, hand brake and lighting.

The wide mouthed design of the main body allows for easier loading with modern telehandlers and larger buckets. The introduction of body extensions alters the model number to reflect the increased load capacity.

Additional options are available for these machines

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including electric in cab controls for the bed chains, mudguards & weighing systems/GPS. Six different models are available in the West Maelstrom Rear Discharge line up, ranging from 8cuM-18cuM. For further information go to www.harrywest.co.uk or contact our sales office on 01948 840465. iLivestock

Made in Scotland, Built for Farmers One year ago, we were absolutely delighted to pick up the RHASS Silver Award for Technical Innovation. Being a Scottish company, getting

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Royal Highland Show 2025 recognised by the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland truly means a lot. Based just across the bridge in Rosyth, the Royal Highland Show is our home turf, and we love seeing Scotland’s best farming on our doorstep each year.

At iLivestock, we’re all about giving farmers the tools they need to make life easier and businesses stronger. We know what it’s like on the ground—keeping on top of records, compliance, and stock management is no small task, especially for smaller, familyrun farms. That’s why we built our platform: to bring together weighing, reading, software, and support into one straightforward system that works on your phone or tablet.

It’s not just about going digital—it’s about making everyday farm tasks manageable.

We know how important accurate weighing is, from securing subsidies to avoiding penalties at the abattoir. The problem?

Traditional gear costs a fortune.

That’s why we’ve made our tech affordable, reliable, and built to work where it counts—on real farms.

It’s not just the RHASS that’s noticed, either. We took home two big wins at the 2025 Scotland’s Life Sciences Awards—Global Export Impact and Innovation in Animal Health, Agritech & Aquaculture.

That kind of recognition gives us even more drive to keep building products that actually make a difference.

So if you’re heading to the Highland Show this year, come and say hello. Or better yet, give our demo a try on the App Store or Google Play—and see how iLivestock can work for your farm.

Need a chat? Call us on 0138 332 4358, email sales@ iLivestock.co.uk, or visit www. iLivestock.co.uk.

JMT Honda

JMT HONDA is your local HONDA ATV dealer based in Central Scotland.

For over 40 years JMT HONDA has served the farming community. As Honda Authorised Dealers we supply, maintain and repair your HONDA ATV and PIONEER models using genuine Honda parts and Honda-trained service technicians.

We are also agents for LOGIC Products for ATV &

UTV vehicles, supplying and maintaining LOGIC machinery for agriculture, equestrian, forestry and ground care applications.

HONDA has developed its class-leading range to cater for every requirement, from the entry level TRX420FM1 to the top of the range TRX520FA6, with your choice of manual gearshift, electric shift or fully automatic DCT models, power steering, straight axle or independent rear suspension and 2 years Warranty as standard.

The latest in the line-up, the HONDA PIONEER 520 is proving to be a very popular and reliable choice. HONDA’s compact UTV is perfect for transporting lighter loads over rough terrain, with room for two whilst fitting through tight gaps and smaller gates.

A tipping bed makes unloading easy, and gearshift

Royal Highland Show 2025 paddles make it fun to drive. Call us to arrange a DEMO of ANY HONDA ATV and PIONEER. Visit our stand at the Outdoor Agricultural stands to view the Honda ATV and PIONEER range, a display of LOGIC products and our range of trailers, sprayers and ATV accessories.

Amazone, Krone, McHale, Fleming, Marshall etc. We have technical experts on hand to assist you with any queries you may have, and we are always keen to do a deal on the day. We hope that you can find the time to visit us over the four days.

Joskin

John Kerr Farm Equipment

John Kerr Farm Equipment, Central Scotland’s well established farm machinery dealer will once again be exhibiting at this year’s Royal Highland Show. You will find us on stand 121, Avenue F, where we have been based for many years. We will be displaying a large range of implements from prestige brands such as JCB, Deutz Fahr, Same Tractors,

As the name suggests, the JOSKIN MODULO2 slurry tanker is extremely modular!

In addition, its capacities range from 2,500 to 20,000 litres.

Finally, this fully galvanised model (tank and drawbar) is interesting for all sizes of farms.

It is in fact a real Swiss Army knife as you can choose the options according to your needs.

The sprung drawbar offers you great comfort and the same V-shaped drawbar fully protects the vacuum pump.

The parking stand is located centrally under the drawbar, which allows a loaded vehicle to be unhitched and has the advantage of preventing the vehicle from twisting when parked.

To keep talking about comfort, the double-axle tankers are all equipped with the famous “Roll-Over” bogie. Its design with the position of the leaves under the axle squares not only lowers the centre of gravity, but also, and more importantly, improves the traction in difficult conditions, as the 1st axle is pulled up instead of being pushed into the ground.

This bogie is bolted to the galvanised chassis, which, just

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like with the single axle, will allow you to move the running gear back if you want to add an injector or a spreading boom at the back of the tank, as the Modulo2 is designed to be fitted with such implements.

Important: adding weight to the rear of the tanker will change the balance of your machine and changing the position of the axles will allow you to distribute the weight more evenly or give more weight on the tractor for use in more difficult conditions.

The JOSKIN tanker is a short, sturdy machine with a very limited overhang when a spreading equipment is added.

This philosophy makes it easy to manoeuvre in areas with difficult access.

Do you have slurry to spread and want to make the most of it? Whether you are working on grassland, cereals or stubbles, you will find a wide choice of more than 60 spreading booms

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Royal Highland Show 2025 or injectors available from this supplier.

Kubota

Kubota’s TIM 2.0 extends automation Machine automation takes another step forward with the introduction of Tractor Implement Management (TIM) 2.0, but this time, extending into fertiliser spreader control when used in combination with the Kubota M7004 KVT Premium tractor series.

With TIM 2.0, both the Kubota DSX-W and DSXL-W GEOSPREAD twin-disc fertiliser spreader models are

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capable of optimising the height of the rear linkage and pitch of the spreader – the latter achieved through a new feature called Top Link Length.

Height and pitch become more critical with wider spreading widths. And the combination of low tyre pressures and large hopper capacities can influence disc height as the spreader hopper empties.

Using integral hydraulic cylinder position sensors built into the top link and two height sensors on the spreader, TIM 2.0 can further improve application accuracy by maintaining the chosen disc height and pitch, in response to changes in spreader weight.

In addition, TIM 2.0 can automatically maintain PTO rpm up and down hills, by adjusting the forward speed of the tractor to prevent fluctuation in disc speed, either through over-speeding or an increased engine load.

In addition, both the Kubota DSX-W GEOSPREAD and DSXL-W GEOSPREAD models are now available with an integrated hydraulic driveline called intelligent Disc Control (iDC).

Ditching the mechanical PTO shaft, iDC uses two individually controlled hydraulic motors – one to power each disc.

This sophisticated driveline enables independent disc speed regulation on left and right-hand discs, introducing a wider range of possibilities for even greater application accuracy.

With headlands accounting for up to 54% of a field’s total area – the smaller the field, the greater the headland percentage – there is a requirement for enhanced spread pattern control during border spreading. This is not just on the headland side, but also in-field when border spreading, where the full spread pattern has to be maintained.

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Making use of Power Beyond, iDC delivers a more consistent disc speed, independent of tractor engine revs, adding greater efficiency with tractor fuel consumption.

Knight Machinery

Knight reveals new sprayer tech developments for 2025 The new Knight Contour Master boom levelling system, developed in-house to suit all Knight boom ranges and widths, is among the highlights of Knight sprayer developments for 2025, alongside the new SmartInject nozzle technology.

Designed to ensure greater levels of nozzle to crop/ground

Royal Highland Show 2025 distance accuracy, for enhanced product efficacy, improved workrates and reduced risk of crop and boom damage, Contour Master boom levelling can be specified across the range of mounted, trailed and selfpropelled Knight sprayers The system uses independent distance sensors – four on the standard version and six on the 6G variant for even faster response on wider 4 Series and Tri-Fold Knight booms.

The sensors feed information instantly to a power processor controller which governs modulating valves that provide seamless, accurate corrections of boom height and the centre boom section angle. In addition, the valves control the positive/ negative inclination of the left and right inner boom, and of the left and right outer booms.

Knight’s new Smart-Inject development, which won the Innovation Award earlier this

year at LAMMA 2025. SmartInject allows both full field and spot spraying to be performed simultaneously with the same machine. The product for spot spraying, transferred from a separate tank via a secondary line, is only mixed with the main tank solution directly at the nozzle, using pulse width modulation. Variable pulse frequency allows fine-tuning of the application.

These developments have been introduced alongside proven Knight technology, including MAXImizer PRO circulation, Tank Control PRO automated fill functions, and KINS (Knight Individual Nozzle Switching), which provides air operated individual nozzle control. Helping minimise product wastage on headlands and short work, KINS uses Knight’s air-switching on/ off valves, and can be specified on 250mm or 500mm nozzle spacing.

Kverneland

Kverneland Sync simplifies implement data exchange.

Sync is a newly developed implement gateway for all Kverneland ISOBUS-equipped implements, to simplify and improve data exchange between the implement and farm office.

This innovative telematics system is geared towards improving operational efficiency, and it operates with an ‘always connected’ protocol through ISOBUS and mobile network connectivity. Doing so enables Sync to seamlessly transfer data from the implement to IsoMatch FarmCentre, Kverneland’s integrated farm management platform.

Sync also enables real-time tracking of operational behaviour and diagnostic trouble codes (DTC’s). Users can also benefit from remote support functionality through the Kverneland ServiceCentre, enabling technicians to analyse data and resolve issues promptly and remotely.

Added functionality includes synchronisation with Kverneland implement apps, for example to establish precise machine location and tracking, and improving the security of implements stored at remote locations.

A further benefit of the system is that all GEOSPREAD fertiliser spreader models can accept spreading chart settings directly from the mobile phone app, bypassing the universal terminal completely and increasing operational simplicity for those using tractor manufacturer terminals.

Lemken UK

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Efficient & light-weight Solitair DT drill from LEMKEN Incredibly easy to tow, integrated compact disc harrow, comfortable operation and a large, optionally divided seed hopper – that is LEMKEN’s Solitair DT seed drill, available in working widths of 4, 6 and 9 metres.

With greatest possible efficiency with up to nine metres working width and maximum precision – these were the maxims set for designing the Solitair DT. The result is a drill combination with truly impressive performance: lighter, more efficient, better.

Optimal seedbed preparation The integrated Heliodor compact disc harrow leaves an evenly loosened, finely crumbly, level seedbed. Corrugated discs are optionally available for less intensive seedbed preparation.

For precise depth control each disc is individually attached to the frame via leaf springs for precise depth control. Unlike commonly used rubber buffers, leaf springs guarantee that the discs have significantly higher track stability during operation. Optionally, these are also available with hydraulic adjustment.

Precise fertiliser placement The fertiliser coulter bar can be attached in front of the tyre packer roller on request.

Fertiliser is precisely placed at the desired depth between two rows of seeds with up to 150 kg share pressure via the double disc coulters.

The Solitair DT can be used for seeding with fertilisation or for sowing different seeds. The catch crop/granulate spreader MultiHub can be fully integrated into the user interface as an additional seeding line and enables the placement of a third component. The two variants single-shot and double-shot are available.

Optimal reconsolidation The tyre packer roller not only serves a transport function but also ensures that the entire seedbed is reconsolidated evenly. A trapeze packer roller can be optionally used for row reconsolidation.

Royal Highland Show 2025 The staggered arrangement of the individual wheels additionally leads to better self-cleaning and ensures good sowing, even in wet conditions.

Logic Manufacturing

Logic Manufacturing Limited is the trusted name in high-quality, easy-to-use equipment built specifically for all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), utility task vehicles (UTVs), tractors, and 4x4s.

Proudly British-built and made to last, their extensive range of trailers, implements, and accessories is designed and manufactured here in the UK. Every product is crafted from premium materials, ensuring the ideal balance of strength, performance, and durability.

With over 40 years of design and manufacturing expertise,

Logic has earned its place as the UK’s leading brand—driven by a commitment to innovation, quality, choice, and integrity.

Find us on stand S236A at this years’ show where we will be displaying our range of products from the agricultural, forestry, gamekeeping and equestrian sectors.

Lynx Engineering

Lynx engineering will be exhibiting a wide range of products on its trade stand at the royal highland show. among them will be the brand-new stoll profiline isobus-connected front

loader.

The hydraulically controlled stoll isobus loader system requires no specific loader or mid mount valves on the tractor. instead, it delivers full integration of the front loader controls with the tractor system via the tractor’s onboard joystick and isobus terminal.

Once installed, as many as 12 additional functions become available, selectable via the tractor’s display terminal and set according to parameters defined by the operator. these include the ability to weigh meal and add up total weights, and to pre-program working heights, working windows and repetitive operations. in silage production, operators will be able to program the squeeze pressure of the bale handler on the bale without deformation. these features and more - can help to improve tractor and operator productivity on a daily basis.

The new loader will be of particular interest to contractors and operators of tractors from 120hp upwards where isobus functionality can be specified as an option for other farm machinery operations such as diet feeders and fertiliser spreaders.

Lynx will also be showing examples from the agribumper line of variable front weight and tractor bumper systems. designed to give other road users more visual awareness of a tractor on the road and its width, they include daytime running lights, indicators, width marker poles and reflector chevrons. weight packages, including toolbox options, range from 350 to 2000kg depending on the product type.

Other products to be exhibited will include dromone pick-up hitches and ball and spoon coupling systems, zuidberg front linkage and pto

Your dealer for the best range of farm equipment in Central Scotland

Please visit our website www.john-kerr.com for up to date used machinery and special deals on new equipment 01506 842280 07836 527 480 (Andrew) email: andrew@john-kerr.com www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com

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Royal Highland Show 2025 systems, examples from the düvelsdorf range of grassland maintenance equipment, plus a selection of variable density block and toolbox weights.

More information on the lynx website at: www.lynxengineering.co.uk McHale Engineering

McHale are looking forward to the return of the Royal Highland Show and will be exhibiting a wide range of machinery on their stand throughout the 4 days. This year, McHale has increased their stand size and will be showcasing a wide range from their grassline range.

The new ProPel T10-1260 Tedder will be on display at the

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show. These ProPel tedders are the ideal machines to lift and aerate even the heaviest crops.

This results in the best quality fodder in the shortest time. The tedders have proven to be strong, robust machines which are highly efficient and reliable in all terrains.

The new F5 range of fixed chamber balers introduce our newly designed Profi-Flo pick-up featuring enhanced throughput and increased crop flow. Bale density and bale binding has increased in performance to produce higher density bales. A focus has also been placed on operator comfort with the use of the new i-Control 5 console which allows for bale density and net adjustment to be made from the comfort of the tractor cab. Whilst these and a host of other new features have been added, the reliability and heavyduty build quality that McHale is renowned for is still maintained.

Outside of this McHale will be exhibiting their full range of machinery on their stand on Avenue S which will include mowers, tedders, rakes, integrated baler wrappers, fixed & variable chamber balers, bale wrappers and straw blower & silage feeding equipment.

McHale sales and service personnel will be on hand to discuss the latest products and technologies on their stand on Avenue S Stand 255.

Merlo UK

Merlo UK is moving to a new and larger location at this year’s Royal Highland Show—on Avenue E, Stand 86A. This new space will showcase the breadth

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of Merlo’s innovative telehandler range, with models tailored for every farming application.

At the heart of the machines on show will be Merlo’s versatile Turbofarmer range, offering compact, medium, and highcapacity telehandlers designed to meet the demands of modern agriculture.

Compact and Capable Merlo’s compact models are purpose-built for tight spaces and traditional farm buildings.

The entry-level 75hp TF27.6 introduces a host of upgrades over the previous P27.6, including a new high-torque hydrostatic driveline (40km/h top speed) and a boosted hydraulic flow of 95 l/ min.

The 100hp TF30.7, under 2 metres wide, delivers a 3.0-tonne lift capacity and 7-metre reach, making it a powerful yet nimble workhorse. A variety of specification options—such as cab suspension—adds flexibility.

Royal Highland Show 2025 Topping the compact lineup, the 115hp TF33.7 features a 125 l/min load-sensing, flowsharing hydraulic system, ideal for the most demanding farm tasks. All compact models come equipped with Merlo’s full-size ROPS/FOPS cab and a newly designed capacitive multifunction joystick for superior operator comfort and control.

Mid-Range Muscle The TF42.7 is the go-to machine for heavier duties.

Delivering 136hp and a 139 l/min load-sensing hydraulic pump, this 4.2-tonne, 7-metre telehandler is perfect for highdemand applications like grain loading.

For those needing even more reach, the TF38.10 TTCS extends to 10 metres via its three-stage boom, complete with boom side-shift and frame levelling—ideal for stacking bales or bulk bags with precision.

Reach Higher The agricultural line is further supported by Merlo’s tracked carriers and high-reach stabilised construction machines, including the flagship ROTO 50.30, boasting a remarkable 30-metre reach for serious lifting performance.

Visit Merlo UK at their new stand to explore the full range and discover the right machine for every job.

Murray Machinery

Established in 1979, Murray Machinery Ltd has been operating from within

Aberdeenshire for over 40 years, manufacturing material handling attachments to fit telescopic handlers, forklifts and tractor loaders for the UK agricultural sector.

We have an extensive product range of over 40 machines with numerous variations such as bale handling equipment, muck-grabs, grain buckets, push-off buckrakes, stone forks, snow blades, access platforms and quick hitch adaptors as well as our awardwinning gravel road grader.

Our gravel road grader won the Gold Award at the Royal Highland Technical Innovation Awards 2023. The purpose of the Murray Gravel Road Grader is to reinstate gravel roads which have fallen into a state of disrepair, to a new and pristine condition.

The grader has various options available including bolt on hardox edges,

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hydraulically operated ripper teeth, hydraulically operated tilting frame, marker boards and rear lights. With the addition of a rear compactor roller, the Murray Machinery gravel road grader is now able to carry out four different functions in the same machine. With careful adjustment of the levelling beams the road grader is able to leave the road surface high in the middle or the machine can also put a camber or a slope on the whole width of the roads therefore helping to take care of rain water management. In utilising stone from the existing road surface, great savings can be made on time, effort and money spent on maintaining your gravel road.

Murray Machinery Ltd are very proud to announce that we were also the 2023 recipient of the RHASS President’s Initiative Salver for achieving the Gold Technical Innovation

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Royal Highland Show 2025 Medal for our Gravel Road Grader.

Perry of Oakley

All Your Grain Drying, Handling & Storage Needs Fulfilled by a single British Manufacturer Whether you are looking to make improvements to your current set-up or invest in a totally new grain plant Perry of Oakley, a British manufacturer, can supply it all.

Grain Driers Whatever your grain drying needs Perrys have a drier to meet them with continuous flow grain driers with capacities from 5tph to 150+tph on wheat.

In conjunction with the driers come a range of optional extras including PLC panel upgrades, centrikleens to reduce dust & chaff, automatic moisture control and also fire detection.

Storage To compliment the grain drying Perrys offer a full range of storage solutions with square hopper-bottom bins, hopperbottom and flat-bottom silos.

The bins can store from 1 to 100 tonnes (based on wheat at 750kg/m3). The bins are suitable for both indoor and outdoor use and can be manufactured with forklift channels.

The silos range from 35 up to 20,000 tonnes of storage dependent on silo type, diameter & height. Perrys also provide a full range of silo accessories include catwalks, aeration systems, discharge auger systems, sweep augers, and several systems for monitoring the stored grain are also available.

Handling To integrate the drying and storage Perrys have an excellent track record in design & manufacturing of handling. Everything from a single machine through to your whole plant - Perrys can supply 68

it all which removes all your integration challenges.

Supported from the UK, right when you need it most.

Contact Perrys today for all your handling, storage & drier requirements on (0)1404 890 300 or email sales@perryofoakley. co.uk, and receive a free, no obligation quotation.

Pottinger

POTTINGER SERVO 4000 Onland plough makes debut at RHS The Royal Highland Show will see the unveiling of the new Servo 4000 with on-land option is one of the highlights at stand 129.

With the new on-land equipment, switching from infurrow to on-land ploughing is fast and requires only a few steps, allowing fast reactions to changing conditions. The frame is brought into the on-land position by the leading cylinder.

This makes it suitable for use with tractors up to an outside width of 3 m. The swing-out path of the leading cylinder can be adapted to the outside width of the tractor, this reduces the turning radius and the overall stresses exerted when turning.

The principle and set-up of the Servomatic control centre for the on-land equipment remains unchanged, as does the arrangement of the setting points.

The new equipment option allows tractors fitted with wide tyres or tracks to drive on untilled soil, exerting less pressure on the soil. Because the tyre makes no contact with the worked soil, compaction from the tractor is not pressed into deeper soil layers. Likewise, it eliminates the risk of smearing the bottom of the furrow which can be caused by wheel slip

from tractors driving in the furrow. Preventing compaction promotes crop root growth, soil life, and ensures access to water and nutrients.

Because the tractor is parallel to the ground when working on land a more comfortable sitting position is guaranteed, as the vehicle does not tilt owing to its tyres being in the furrow. These features provide great relief to drivers, especially on long working days, while at the same time ensuring precise results.

The Servo 4000, largest among the mounted ploughs, is designed for maximum output and service life as well as for use with tractors up to 360 hp.

The option of on-land ploughing brings greater flexibility for optimum and “made-tomeasure” ploughing while at the same time conserving the soil structure.

Powerwasher Services

Powerwasher Services Ltd are a proud family-owned and operated business, spanning three generations. We specialise in the sale, hire, service, and repair of a diverse range of highquality equipment, including power washers, scrubber dryers, vacuums, generators, compressors, heaters, water pumps, dust suppression, cleaning detergents, and more.

Our focus on delivering highquality products at competitive prices, combined with exceptional customer support, makes us a trusted name throughout Scotland.

PWS began in 1983, when Jack Whitecross, an experienced dairyman with extensive knowledge of the agricultural market, founded Powerwasher Services Ltd. Over the years,

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we have expanded our reach into various other industries, including transport and haulage, hospitality and leisure, engineering and manufacturing, and oil, gas, and marine.

Today, we provide specialised equipment tailored to meet the unique needs of businesses across these sectors.

With a fleet of 10 service vans and 2 dedicated sales representatives on the road daily, we are committed to serving customers across Scotland with expert advice and reliable support for all sales, service, hire, and repair requirements.

Whether it’s maintaining your equipment to recommending the best solutions for your business, our knowledgeable team is here to help.

Over our 42 years, we are proud to have built strong, lasting relationships with our customers through hard work, determination, and the consistent delivery of quality products. This dedication has positioned us as industry leaders and earned us the loyalty of clients throughout Scotland.

We look forward to welcoming you to our stand at the Royal Highland Show, where you can discuss your requirements or stop by for a friendly chat and cuppa. At Powerwasher Services, we are not just about selling equipment – we build relationships and support your business success every step of the way, ensuring you experience the PWS difference.

Savills

Join Savills ringside at the Royal Highland Show We’ll be there for all four days, and we’d love you to stop by. Whether you’re running

Royal Highland Show 2025 a working farm, exploring diversification or looking for practical advice on rural business strategy, our specialists will be on hand to talk through your plans.

It’s clear that today’s buyers of land – whether farmers, families or investors – are taking a more careful look at land use and long-term value. And with costs, markets and weather all in flux, it’s never been more important to get the right support when making decisions.

At Savills, we’ve been working alongside farmers and estate owners for over 170 years. From day-to-day land management and renewables advice to succession planning, sales and valuations, we tailor our support to suit your setup.

So whether you’re thinking of selling, planning for the next generation or simply want a fresh perspective on how to make the most of your land, come and have a chat with us at the show.

Shearwell Data

Shearwell also offers the added benefit of free replacement tags for the life of the animal (for full details please visit www.shearwell.co.uk).

With a customer-focused approach, Shearwell’s knowledgeable team is always available to offer expert support, ensuring that you have the right solutions to meet your needs.

Their innovative cloudbased software, MyFarmWorks, is a comprehensive solution for managing animal health records, breeding, performance data, and more. This powerful software seamlessly integrates with Shearwell EID systems, making data entry, analysis, and reporting easier than ever before. Plus, MyFarmWorks simplifies tasks like government notifications, and you’ll never face hidden costs, as you pay one price - for any number of cattle, sheep or both!

You can be sure you are making the right decision to choose Shearwell. Their solutions are user friendly and when combined with their expert support, you can be confident in your decision. If you have any questions, please call our Scotland Representative on 07714 744 686 or 07788 209 438 or pop by their stand at the Highland – they will be in the NSA tent.

Terrington Machinery

Shearwell is a leading provider of animal identification and management solutions, dedicated to supporting livestock farmers with a comprehensive range of products including tags, readers, apps, and handling equipment.

With over 30 years of experience in the industry, Shearwell is farmerowned and operated, giving them a deep understanding of what matters most to their customers: high-quality products, fast delivery, and exceptional customer service.

Shearwell’s commitment to quality is evident in every product.

Their product range is rigorously tested on farm to ensure reliability and ease of use. Known for industry-leading retention rates, 70

Terrington Machinery Limited have been importing and distributing Einbock Grassland Harrows and Pneumatic Seeders for over 30 years, having built up a dealer network covering the whole of the U.K In that time, the range of Harrows and Seeders has increased due to the customer demands for machines to cope with different conditions.

The harrow range includes four different models.

Sportstar – For fine turf, Golf courses etc. Complete with 6.5mm tines at 12.5mm spacing.

Grass-Manager – For pasture maintenance. Complete with 8mm tines at 25mm spacing.

Grass-Manager SR – For more aggressive working on permanent pasture or heavy land.

Complete with 10mm tines at 25mm spacing.

Grass-Manager PRO – Using hydraulic pressurizing of the sections to apply or release pressure on the tines from the tractor seat giving the user control for different working conditions within a field.

Complete with 10mm tines at 25mm spacing and heavy sprung front levelling boards.

Any of the range of harrows can be fitted with an Einbock Pneumatic box to convert into Pneumaticstar Seeders to enable reseeding, undersowing of grass or seeding any small seed.

Pneumaticbox MD – A mechanical metered seeder box that is metered from a landwheel on the harrow. As standard with twin electric fan up to 6m but PTO and Hydraulic are available.

Pneumaticbox STI – An electronic version that can be either used with a landwheel and top link sensor or 7 pin info socket that takes information from the tractor. As standard with tank level sensor, airstream monitor and full in cab control to allow for seed rate adjustment and full read out of seed rates, speed and daily working acreage etc. Again, twin electric fans are as standard but PTO and Hydraulic are available.

Visit www.terrington-machinery. co.uk to see the complete range of harrows and seeders available.

Vaderstad

Väderstad’s popular Spirit drill has long been known for its precision, ease of use, and reliable performance in the field. Now, with a new 5,000-litre hopper available on the Spirit 400C Combi and 600–900C models, farmers can

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cover more ground between fills— making the most of every drilling window.

The larger hopper means fewer stops, less time on the headland, and more hectares drilled in a day.

It’s a simple but effective upgrade that makes a big difference when you’re racing against the weather.

True to form, the Spirit combines high-speed seeding with excellent accuracy. The proven Fenix II metering system handles seed and fertiliser with ease, while E-Control gives you full command of rates, tramlines and section control straight from the cab, using an iPad. It’s quick to set up, intuitive to use, and easy to tweak on the move.

Up front, the machine works the soil just enough to create the ideal seedbed, while the disc coulters and press wheels deliver consistent depth and great seedto-soil contact. The result? Even establishment, reliable emergence, and healthy crops right from the start.

Whether you’re drilling cereals, OSR, or working with fertiliser in a single pass, the Spirit Combi models are designed to deliver. And with the new 5,000-litre hopper, they’re now even better suited to larger farms and contractors looking for high output and minimal downtime.

Built with Swedish attention to detail and backed by strong dealer support, the Väderstad Spirit is a solid investment for growers who want efficiency without compromise.

V-Mac Silos

Elevate Your Farming with V-Mac Silos For farmers, efficient feed storage isn’t just a matter of convenience; it’s crucial for livestock health and cost

Royal Highland Show 2025 management. Enter V-Mac Silos, a revolutionary solution that redefines feed storage with its superior quality, durability, and user-friendly design.

Health and Safety Redefined V-Mac Silos prioritize the well-being of your animals.

Crafted from high-quality, corrosion resistant, magzinc steel, they ensure feed integrity and freshness while keeping contaminants and pests at bay. With V-Mac Silos, your livestock’s health is safeguarded in a hygienic environment, minimizing risks associated with traditional storage methods.

Cost-Efficiency at its Core Say goodbye to feed wastage and unnecessary expenses.

V-Mac Silos are engineered to minimize spoilage, maximizing the utility of every pound of feed. Their innovative design facilitates easy monitoring and dispensing, reducing the risk of overfeeding and optimizing cost management. Investing in V-Mac Silos isn’t just a storage solution; it’s a strategic move

toward long-term financial sustainability.

Seamless Ease of Use Experience hassle-free feed storage with V-Mac Silos.

Designed for maximum convenience, they feature user-friendly elements like easy-fill openings and smoothflow outlets. Whether you’re a seasoned farmer or new to the field, you’ll appreciate the simplicity and efficiency of V-Mac Silos. Spend less time on storage logistics and more time on what truly matters – nurturing your livestock.

Unmatched Build Quality Built to endure the rigors of farm life, V-Mac Silos boast exceptional durability. Crafted from heavy-duty materials, they withstand harsh weather conditions and everyday wear and tear with ease. With V-Mac Silos, you’re not just investing in storage; you’re investing in reliability that lasts for years to come.

In conclusion, V-Mac Silos offer more than just storage

solutions; they represent a paradigm shift in feed management. Elevate your farming experience with V-Mac Silos – where quality, efficiency, and reliability converge to empower your agricultural endeavors.

Yamaha ATV

Yamaha ATV #By your side The Royal Highland Show has always featured high on the list for Yamaha, but this year is a little different as we are celebrating our 70th Anniversary, so we will be bringing the cake and looking forward to making a toast with you on our trade stand, albeit

with a humble cup of tea or coffee!

Our local dealers will be on stand (Stand number: S243) to welcome you and answer any questions you may have on the range of ATV and side-by-sides we have.

Whatever your journey, whatever your passion this year we will be bringing our newest models for you to explore: There’ll be the hard-working Viking and Kodiaks on display for those in work mode and the Grizzly and RMAX for those looking for a slice of freedom. And for the thrill seekers amongst you our Sports range will be raring to go and ready to entice you onto the track.

And not forgetting our commercial UMX workhorses, these will be ready for you to study all features up close to help you make the right purchase.

We look forward to seeing you on our stand again this year. See you in June!

Image fragment from the NEW 2025 YME page to show all ATVS

Royal Highland Show Visitor Information Showground Opening and Closing Times Visitors are advised of the Conditions of Entry which are published on the Royal Highland Show and RHASS websites and are displayed at the public entrances to the Show.

Timings: 7:00 – 20:00 Thursday till Saturday / 07:00 – 18:00 on Sunday Ticket Information

Adult - from £43 Child (15 and under) - £0 Farming Flexi - Thursday or Friday - from £47 Hoolie Adult - £39 RHS and Hoolie Adult - from £68 Hoolie Child - £27.50 www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com

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BeefTech ‘25

Countdown to Aberdeenshire BeefTech on 28th May Preparations are gathering speed for BeefTech ‘25, a specialist event organised by the Royal Northern Agricultural Society (RNAS) which is to be held on Wednesday, 28 May 2025 at Home Farm, Kininmonth, Mintlaw, Aberdeenshire. BeefTech 25 is being hosted by the Gall family, Gray, his wife Kate, son Noel, wife Jo and their sons Mure and Sandy.

“BeefTech has been extremely well received by the industry – with over 70 trade stands booked - and we are indebted to the numerous sponsors and businesses that are supporting the event.” says Brian Ross, in his role as joint event convenor with Scott Mathers. “For any beef producer or new entrant, it really is a one stop shop.”

Home Farm supplies the majority of their finished cattle to the McIntosh Donald abattoir at Portlethen, part of the Kepak Group and principal sponsor for BeefTech 25.

“The event is a great opportunity to promote the beef industry and also highlight all the stakeholders within the supply chain that help generate the industry, showcasing their commitment, talent and passion for the sector” says Ewan Hutcheson, McIntosh Donald procurement.

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Other major sponsors include Virgin Money, ANM Group, Denis O Brown, AAB and Harbro.

In addition to trade stands, there will be a breed society marquee, barley trial plots, working demonstrations of feeder wagons, an autonomous tractor and a ‘green on green’ sprayer (using AI to target spray weeds).

On foot, a ‘self-conducted’ farm tour will take in the feeding cattle, cows and calves and the barley trial plots.

“Through the day, seminars will address the challenges facing producers and hopefully, show a way ahead for the sector in the short and long term, concluding with a more light hearted matter of opinion.” added Brian Ross.

Away from the business element, a stockjudging and auction will be held with proceeds going to the lcal branch of Macmillan Cancer Support, a charity close to the Gall family,

having cared for two close relatives in recent years. East Comalegy Ltd – store cattle buyer for the Galls – has donated prize money for the stockjudging.

Home Farm has been in the Gall family for over 100 years and they annually finish 1000 head of cattle, a large number of these purchased from Ayrshire and Lanarkshire. Noel likes nothing better than seeing a load of well-finished cattle going away. Cattle are finished inside on a TMR of silage, barley, stockfeed potatoes, minerals and pot ale syrup.

A different approach is being taken with the 60 head of Wagyu cattle which arrived at Home Farm in 2024. These smaller cattle ranging from 280-350kg are not pushed so hard to start with, being fed a grower type ration for the first few months.

Noel aims to finish them at 680kg liveweight over 22 months.

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The herd of 90 Saler cross suckler cows has one specific aim, ‘commercial cows producing commercial calves’ for going away at 680 kg liveweight at 16-20 months.

Replacements are bought privately, with the Saler cross favoured for being easy calving, milky and good mothers. Cows are put to Aberdeen Angus and Limousin bulls (red and black) and calve down at two years.

The farm stretches to 600 acres with a further 200 acres rented, 100 for crops and 100 for grazing. 350 acres of barley are grown for feeding; split 150 of winter and 200 spring. 120 acres of oats, 60 acres of wheat and 60 acres of oilseed rape are grown for selling.

800 Shetland cross lambs are bought for finishing, first on grass, moving to stubble turnips and feed from January onwards.

“These lambs are Texel, Suffolk

BeefTech ‘25 and Cheviots and coming from Shetland, are very clean and healthy with no scab. On grass, the lambs grow really well, putting a good frame on them.” says Noel.

Jo who is currently vicepresident of the North Country Cheviot Sheep Society jointly runs the Belmaduthy flock of 120 ewes with her mother,

Isobel McCallum and sister Ailsa between Home Farm and her mother’s farm on the Black Isle.

Jo champions the park type Cheviot for their versatility in crossing with many breeds.

“They look after themselves, are healthy, long lived and have great conformation.” says Jo. Lamb is very much on

the menu for Noel and Jo at the Saplinbrae Hotel and Lodges, Mintlaw, a 14 bedroom establishment which they bought in 2015. Saplinbrae is self -sufficient in home-produced lamb and provenance is a key selling point for their 80 cover bar and restaurant, with an emphasis on locally produced and sourced food.

BeefTech is open from 9.00am and kicks off with a Beef Breakfast entitled Opportunities sponsored

by Leiper & Summers. Tickets for the breakfast are free but must be reserved online beforehand.

Visit rnas.org.uk to book tickets for the Beef Breakfast, buy event tickets or for general information about the event, visit rnas.org.uk/specialist-events.

The full seminar programme - sponsored by Virgin Money - is as follows; 9am - Beef Breakfast Opportunities Market Opportunities - Ewan Hutcheson, Kepak New entrant opportunities - Cammy Wilson, The Sheep Game Banking Opportunities – Brian Richardson, Virgin Money 10.30am - Virtual Fencing Technology QMS introduce revolutionary technology using an app and GPSequipped cattle collars which could transform managing hill and upland suckler herds.

1pm – Future Proofing For Farming Business Professional View – Brian Richardson, Virgin Money Beef Market View – Scott Donaldson, H&H Group plc Farmer’s View – Peter Oosterhof, Savoch, Fraserburgh Sustainability View – Dr Elaine Booth, Ednie, Peterhead 3pm – A Matter of Opinion Doug Dear – D & P Custom Feeding, Yorkshire Drew Young – Girvan Mains, Ayrshire Crawford Niven - Gloagburn Farm, Perth Noel Gall – BeefTech host

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IN

British Friesians The perfect regen cow The ability of our dairy cows to convert grass into highly nutritious milk and meat is surely a wonder to behold! Milk from grass and quality silage underpins many a successful farming system, being less exposed to volatile feed costs. It

is here that the British Friesian fits perfectly, as she has been bred to this system, both in the UK and previously in her native Friesland.

Breeding from a well proven background, it is us farmers who have developed this animal with

her superior fertility, lifespan and a second income from rearing on male calves whether crossed with beef or not. A balanced cow for a balanced system.

Therefore, it is timely that the British Friesian Breeders Club have two farms that are so

Shopland Edleet Ruth

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appropriate for our Herd Visits this June.

Robert Shanks - Queenscairn Farm, Kelso Robert’s grandfather began farming with British Friesians back in 1922 when the family

IN farmed in Kirkcudbright, with the Rattra prefix. Robert’s father moved to Queenscairn in 1955 and started the Queenscairn prefix. He was a keen British Friesian enthusiast and tried hard to maintain size throughout the 60s and 70s, eventually introducing some Canadian influenced Holstein bulls in the early ‘70’s.

However, when Robert started selecting the breeding bulls in the early 80s, they were all 100% Holstien, most of the industry went down the same route at this time. Following Queenscairn’s move to organic in 2006 to maximise the milk price, Robert noticed the new system of farming was tough on his 250 strong pedigree Holstein herd.

However, in 2012, Robert decided he had to reinstate Friesian bloodlines having lost too many downer cows which had been unable to get back up.

He had worried about the drop in milk inherent in crossing with the

Friesian but found that the more modern Friesian is milkier than he remembered and, as he says, “We did see a drop in milk, but it was not catastrophic. We are not breeding an animal which does not want to milk… I want to breed animals which have a long and productive life…Friesians are a lot more robust.”

Robert says the Friesian crosses are also far more fertile than the Holsteins were, because the herd had recorded a calving interval of 400+ days, now it averages 364 days. Cows are also lasting longer, with some now staying in the herd until their seventh lactation and beyond.

As an organic herd must graze for as much of the year as possible, the cows are turned out from April until the end of October which means that Robert focuses on feet, leg and udder traits when selecting sires, and the ability to remain within Holstein UK’s open herd book was key to his decision

as pedigree breeding remains a family tradition.

Thornington Farm, Mindrum Tom Neill is the third generation on the farm which averages about 8,000kg and produces between 2.4 to 2.5 million litres of milk p/a from his 310 British Friesians for Arla within their 360 scheme.

Tom’s parents are still involved in the business, as are Tom’s wife Nicola and children Emma and Michael.

There is much emphasis on home-grown forages and grazing as the hardy Friesians are turned out in late April. Most of the feed and bedding straw needed for the stock on the farm is home grown on over 700 acres. Youngstock are fed a ration based on urea treated barley and beans with the milking herd fed a base ration of urea treated barley and a protein blend (with no Soya).

The herd’s calving interval is 365 days and all black-andwhite bull calves born on the

farm are castrated and reared to 20 – 24 months of age, when they are either sold at auction or go direct to slaughter.

Excess fresh calved heifers are sold through Harrison & Hetherington’s monthly dairy day, with the British Friesian heifers being strong sellers.

Tom reckons that between the cull cows, fresh heifers, Limousin cross bulling heifers, steers and calves, the farm accrues an extra 20p per litre on all milk produced. Technology has played an increasingly important part in this largescale mixed enterprise which, through extensive monitoring, has enabled herd size to increase, whilst maintaining performance and improving living conditions for the herd when housed in the new shed built in 2012. However, the hardiness and good fertility of the breed also help to keep vet visits to a minimum and maximise the grazing season.

Randolph

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livestock New distributor for livestock marker Heiniger, in association with Trilanco, has taken on distribution of the popular livestock marker, Super Sprayline. The all-weather, longlasting aerosol spray is available in eight colours and is approved by the British Wool Marketing Board for sheep and lamb identification but is also suitable for cows and other livestock.

“I have worked with this product since it was first launched

by Ritchey and it is still a market leader, so we are proud to bring it into the Heiniger range,” says Heiniger’s managing director Ashley Musgrave.

The spray is available in 200ml and 400ml cans that do not require a ball bearing to homogenise it before use.

“The formulation of Super Sprayline is such that it remains

homogenous and ready to use without the need of a ball bearing to mix it. This makes it easier and quieter to use which is of particular benefit when marking lambs,” says Mr Musgrave.

Around 1000 applications are available from the larger size can which is fitted with an anticlogging nozzle to provide an even and continuous spray. The nozzle also operates at any angle to make application easier and more accurate when spraying upwards.

“The 360-degree nozzle is a big help when spraying sheep during scanning or working with lambs because it offers greater flexibility,” he adds.

Super Sprayline joins an already strong lineup of animal husbandry products in the Heiniger range and will be

available exclusively through distributor Trilanco.

“Trilanco is the perfect partner to distribute Super Sprayline and retailers should contact the Trilanco team direct

to place orders. Should any customers be looking to buy in bulk, the Heiniger team is on hand to discuss the option of palletised deliveries,” he concludes.

New digital platform set to transform poultry sector’s disease resilience Livetec Systems has launched Livestock Protect, a cuttingedge digital platform designed to help the poultry sector predict, prevent, and respond to disease threats with greater confidence and control.

With avian influenza (AI) continuing to disrupt poultry operations across the UK, the launch of Livestock Protect comes at a critical time, says Julian Sparrey, group technical director and co-founder of Livetec.

“HPAI continues to expose the urgent need for a more robust, 360-degree approach to biosecurity across the poultry sector,” he explains.

“Livestock Protect has been developed to fill that gap, giving producers the tools to manage risk in real-time – making faster, more informed decisions and improving operational efficiencies to help protect their 76

flocks and businesses from disease threats.”

Transforming poultry farm biosecurity As the leading provider of emergency poultry depopulation services for notifiable diseases, Livetec has used its extensive frontline experience, industry data, and welfare-first mindset to help producers streamline operations and improve disease resilience.

Mr Sparrey explains the easy-to-use platform and accompanying mobile app is designed to reduce paperwork and simplify biosecurity management, while empowering all poultry keepers to make faster, data-led decisions to minimise the risk of outbreaks.

“Livestock Protect is available via a subscription model, in three packages to suit different business needs, including a free app-only version

that provides access to essential features,” he says.

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“Among these features are real-time AI outbreak mapping

livestock - including wild birds - which gives producers immediate visibility of disease threats, and our biosecurity chatbot powered

by Google Gemini - Paula which provides instant access to expert advice when it’s needed most.”

Advanced biosecurity features Mr Sparrey explains the Premium and Enterprise packages offer additional functionality.

He says: “Premium and Enterprise users will also get access to eBAS – our unique biosecurity assessment system that delivers weighted risk scores and tailored recommendations for each farm – as well as AccessProtect, which enables simple visitor logging for full traceability at all times.”

For Enterprise users, the platform includes practical emergency response tools, such as a depopulation calculator, live

operations dashboard and access to national outbreak plans.

“These features can also be purchased as bolt-ons to the Free and Premium packages, giving producers the flexibility to build a package that best suits their business needs and risk profile,” Mr Sparrey adds.

Built with scalability in mind, Livestock Protect is already being adopted by largescale integrators and producers and is accessible across iOS, Android, and web platforms.

“While initially focused on the poultry sector, we are actively working to extend the platform’s capabilities across other livestock sectors, including pigs, to support wider industry resilience,” Mr Sparrey concludes.

For more information and to watch a demo of the Livestock Protect platform, visit: https:// w w w. l i v e t e c s y s t e m s . c o . u k / livestock-protect-platform/

Transition nutrition: The key to productivity

Keeping cows in optimum condition before calving is absolutely critical to both cow and calf health – and new research has shown how important tailored nutrition is to this.

Research by Purdue University in the US has shown a clear link between cow muscle mass during the dry period and calf birthweight,

as well as subsequent higher milk yields. And the key to this is advancement in dairy nutrition, to optimise the rumen environment and precisely meet the animal’s needs.

Speaking at the recent Zinpro® IsoFerm® Roadshow, which visited the UK, Poland and Germany, Dr Jackie Boerman, Associate Professor at Purdue University, said: “Skeletal

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Building Momentum for a Thriving Red Meat Future

By Kate Rowell, Chair, Quality Meat Scotland As we look ahead to 202526, I’m incredibly proud of the momentum Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) has built.

The successful completion of our strategic restructure and delivery in the first year of our five-year strategy to 2028 have created a solid foundation for our vision. The dedication of our team and partners is already delivering real results – and we’re just getting started.

This progress is especially evident in our export markets.

For the first time on record, the value of Scotland’s red meat and offal exports has exceeded £100 million – reaching a record £137 million in the year to July 2024.

Scotch Lamb, in particular, shone brightly, making up nearly a third of total export revenue and reinforcing our global reputation for premium quality.

But this is just the beginning. Our £2.8 billion red meat sector has huge potential to do even more for Scotland’s economy, food security and environment.

While red meat processing turnover rose for a fourth

year running in 2023, we know challenges lie ahead.

Confidence in farming remains fragile, and declining livestock numbers – particularly cattle – pose a real threat. That’s why QMS is, and will continue to be, focused on building resilience, confidence and cultivating our significant economic potential in 2025/26 and beyond. Just a couple of examples of what we’re doing to support the sector include work with AHDB and Defra on an Environmental Baselining pilot across 170 farms, including 35 in Scotland, to help producers measure and improve their carbon footprint.

We’re also launching revised quality assurance standards for cattle and sheep later in 2025 – streamlining processes and reinforcing trust in our brands.

I truly believe Scotland can be the choice for premium red meat. With our talented, passionate people and a clear commitment to sustainability, quality, and innovation, we’re ready to lead the way – at home and abroad – for years to come.

Find out more about Quality Meat Scotland at qmscotland.co.uk and follow @qmscotland on social 53

livestock muscle is a critical tissue for dairy cattle. While we have often thought of adipose (fat) as an energy store that can be accreted and depleted based on energy balance, skeletal muscle is also a dynamic tissue that changes across the lactation.”

Cows can lose between 3% and 17% of their body weight after calving, when nutritional demands exceed their ability to consume enough feed. Breaking down muscle releases stored protein for both amino acid and energy requirements. And depletion can begin before calving, to help with foetal development and prepare for the demands of lactation.

“Ultrasound images take before and after calving show that muscle depth can decrease by 30-40% during early lactation,” said Prof Boerman.

Trials have shown that cows with higher muscle mass before calving produced heavier calves – at 48.8kg versus 45.2kg for

those with lower muscle mass.

And they then mobilised more of that muscle after calving – on average 1.54cm of muscle against 0.52cm in the cows with less muscle. This then released more protein for milk production, at 47.8kg of energycorrected milk per day versus 41.4kg in low muscle cows.

“Understanding how and when muscle depletion occurs, and how nutrition can impact this process, is important for improving cow welfare and optimising milk yields,” said Prof Boerman. “The goal is to support the cow’s health through all stages of lactation, helping her to produce the highest quality milk while maintaining muscle mass and overall well-being.”

This is where targeted nutrition comes into play. For many years, research has focused on lactating cow nutrition, with isoacids like Zinpro® IsoFerm® proven to help rumen bacteria to produce microbial protein and

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digest fibres, releasing volatile fatty acids that are used to make milk and replenish energy stores.

More recently, researchers have examined the impact of feeding isoacids during the dry period. Improving rumen efficiency at this time boosts dry matter intakes, helps build muscle mass, and reduces the extent of negative energy balance after calving, said Dr Huw McConochie, Dairy Nutritionist at Zinpro. “Any isoacids not used in the rumen are absorbed and can be used by the liver for glucose production, reducing the need for other energy sources and increasing milk production.”

A study at Purdue University fed cows with isoacids for 42 days prior to calving. At calving, they had a better energy status, with a 6% increase in circulating glucose levels and increased dry matter intake. “Additionally, these cows produced 5% more milk at peak lactation and lost approximately 20kg less weight than cows that were not fed isoacids,” explained Dr McConochie. “That’s 20kg of body weight that they don’t need to put back on, meaning that

energy can instead go into milk production.”

He recommends feeding 40g/cow per day of Zinpro® IsoFerm® throughout the dry period and the fresh / high yielding lactation period. Not only does this increase milk yields and reduce weight loss, it also reduces the risk of transition diseases and boosts subsequent fertility.

The roadshow also saw the launch of a new frontier in dairy nutrition – Zinpro® Availa® ECM3. This unique amino acid complex includes bioactive nutrients that modulate the metabolic response to insulin sensitivity, helping animals to cope better with stress and calving.

“It enhances dry matter intake by up to 4.8% and boosts milk production by 2.5kg/day – or more under heat stress conditions,” said Dr McConochie. “Cows fed through transition to the first 100 days in milk had 2.1% less body weight loss, improving energy status and herd health. At 5p/cow per day it’s a great addition to the Zinpro® IsoFerm® programme for transition cows.”

New advisory services support heat stress management and calf welfare

Livestock housing solutions specialist, Galebreaker has launched an animal welfare advisory service, to help farmers create and maintain optimum environments that promote animal health.

The new support packages delivered by Galebreaker’s animal welfare team include youngstock housing assessments and heat stress monitoring and reports.

Heat stress monitoring & reports Since last year’s launch of

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Galebreaker and Phibro Health’s online Temperature-Humidity Index (THI) tool, THI-Live, a growing number of sensors have been installed at farms across the UK giving an increasingly detailed overview of heat stress risks.

Farmers who sign up to the advisory service will receive a THI sensor, and monthly heat map reports throughout the summer. They will also have access to ongoing live data that allows comparisons with other farms.

livestock The bespoke reports demonstrate how heat stress may be affecting fertility, lameness and milk yields in dairy herds and are ideal for businesses looking to maximise productivity.

For more in-depth analysis, Galebreaker can also provide advanced assessments using vision monitoring cameras, smoke testing, and milk production data which are individually tailored to meet specific needs.

Youngstock housing assessments Galebreaker’s calf building assessments include an on-site appraisal, smoke bomb testing to evaluate in-shed airflow, a review of key factors such as drainage, lighting, spacing and hygiene. This is followed up with a comprehensive written report of findings and recommendations on how to improve existing facilities.

Other services can provide expert input at the design

stage of calf housing through collaboration with agricultural planning consultants or architects.

Galebreaker’s animal welfare team is headed up by Chloe Rodriguez. A bioveterinary science graduate who’s received training from University of Wisconsin in Positive Pressure Tube Ventilation (PPTV) design and accredited in CowSignals® behavioural management, she is responsible for overseeing the latest service offering.

“At Galebreaker, we’re committed to helping farmers make more informed decisions through a better understanding of environmental impacts,” says Miss Rodriguez.

“Our advisory services provide comprehensive insight into how housing affects animal physiology and independent advice on ways to make crucial improvements that will enhance health and performance.”

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livestock QMS continues efforts to engage Westminster and Holyrood on the importance of Scotland’s red meat supply chain In a series of visits throughout February and March, Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) has engaged with several key political figures to raise the profile of, and discuss the opportunities and challenges facing, Scotland’s red meat sector.

As all these MPs were newly elected in the 2024 General Election, the meetings provided a valuable opportunity to highlight the vital role the red meat supply chain plays in their constituencies Following its successful showcase of the Scotch Beef,

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Scotch Lamb, and Specially Selected Pork brands to UK parliamentarians at the prestigious ‘Taste of Scotland’ event at Dover House in January, QMS facilitated a series of productive sector supply chain meetings with key elected officials in Westminster. These included: • Euan Stainbank, Labour MP for Falkirk at Campbell’s Prime Meats, accompanied

by QMS Chair, Kate Rowell.

Euan received a tour and a full

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livestock introduction to Campbell’s business and its plans for future growth. A key topic of discussion was the current cattle numbers and their potential impact on the entire supply chain and the Scottish economy.

• Kirsteen Sullivan, Labour and Co-operative Party MP for Bathgate and Linlithgow at David Stein Butchers, with Kate Rowell and the company’s co-owner, director, and family accountant. They discussed the role of butchers and food service businesses across West Lothian, changing consumer habits, the financial pressures from the UK Autumn Budget, the workforce skills gap, cattle numbers, and current market prices.

• Chris Kane, Labour MP for Stirling and Strathallan at Stirling Agriculture Centre, with QMS Chief Executive Sarah Millar, the Institute of Auctioneers and Appraisers in Scotland (IAAS), ABP Food Group, and United Auctions. The discussions focused on the importance of Stirling and Strathallan to Scotland’s red meat supply chain, with the region hosting two major auction markets, ABP’s Bridge of Allan processing site, and numerous farming businesses—key hubs supporting jobs and economic activity across the region. They also addressed the financial impact of the UK Autumn Budget on businesses, as well as the effects of current cattle numbers on the supply chain.

• Lillian Jones, Labour MP for Kilmarnock and Loudoun, met with Tom Gibson, Director of Business Development at QMS, and Stewart Duguid, business owner of Pollok Williamson Butchers, a member of the Scotch Butchers Club run by QMS. The discussion covered the challenges facing high street butchers, including declining

footfall and skilled labour shortages, as well as current beef supply and market prices. They also explored the wider impact on the supply chain and the importance of securing multi-annual funding for Scottish farmers to ensure long-term sustainability.

Kate Rowell, Chair of QMS, commented: “The concerns arising from the Autumn Budget highlight the need for continued engagement with both UK and Scottish Government politicians and policymakers.

These discussions are crucial to ensuring the long-term success of Scotland’s red meat sector.

They provide an opportunity to highlight the strengths and socio-economic potential of the red meat supply chain, while also addressing the challenges ahead.”

“Thank you to the MPs and businesses for their time during these productive visits. They have reinforced the importance of collaboration across the supply chain to ensure a sustainable, thriving, and positive future for red meat producers, processors, suppliers, and the communities that depend on them.”

In addition to visits with Labour MPs, QMS will continue engaging with MSPs, including a farm walk and talk at Cowbog Farm in Kelso with Rachael Hamilton, Conservative MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh, and Berwickshire, hosted by Roxburgh Monitor Farmer, Robert Wilson. Key topics included the Monitor Farm programme, which has now reached its halfway point, the benefits of EID tags and readers, positive changes to reduce winter housing costs, and the impact of the current beef market on the wider supply chain.

Rachael Hamilton said: “My conclusion is that more politicians must participate in these types of visits to better understand the issues they will be legislating on, ensuring that pragmatic decisions can be made.”

FARMING SCOTLAND MAGAZINE

Next issue out July 2025

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livestock Integration Strengthens Biosecurity Solutions for UK Livestock Farmers as Disease Threats Grow A growing threat from emerging and endemic diseases to UK livestock, coupled with targets to reduce antibiotic use, has led to the integration of two leading biosecurity and animal health firms to enhance disease protection.

Roam Technology, the global leader behind the well-known drinking water disinfectant Huwa-San TR-50, has integrated Biocidas Biodegradables Zix (BBZix), a Spanish specialist in biosecurity and livestock nutritional performance solutions, into its business. This strategic move creates a broader range

of biodegradable hygiene and nutritional solutions to safeguard animal health and productivity in the UK. Critical Time for Livestock Biosecurity The integration comes as UK farmers face mounting disease challenges alongside a range of endemic diseases already present on many livestock farms.

Nigel Bennet, Livestock Area Manager for Northern Europe at Roam Technology, warns that the UK livestock industry is at a critical moment: “Increasing pressure is on farms to produce more from less,

with rising costs and the removal of subsidy payments. Couple this with a growing number of devastating diseases affecting or threatening UK farms, and there has never been a more crucial time for a joined-up approach to biosecurity and animal health solutions,” he said.

“Specifically on pig farms, we are also seeing the added challenge of the removal of ZnO, with anecdotal reports of increased disease issues on pig units. This would support the increase in antibiotic use highlighted in the latest Veterinary Antimicrobial Resistance and Sales Surveillance (VARSS) report released last year.”

By combining expertise and innovation, the integration enables Roam Technology to deliver a more comprehensive, science-driven approach to disease prevention.

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“This integration strengthens our ability to offer farmers a toolkit to protect their animals and businesses. Our growing range of cutting-edge cleaning, disinfectant, and performance solutions, backed by a large veterinary team and expert field force, means we are well-positioned to help livestock farmers tackle disease risks more effectively, supporting farm resilience and productivity,” Mr Bennet added.

What This Means for UK Farmers The expanded product portfolio covers cleaning, disinfectant, and nutritional performance solutions the three pillars of Roam Technology - to improve animal health. Their flagship products include: • Roam Eco Power – a foam cleaner that is eco certified thanks to its eco-friendly

livestock composition. It is ideally suited for the removal of organic deposits on a wide variety of materials in livestock.

• Huwa-San TR-50 – a highly effective, and market-leading DEFRA-approved drinking water disinfectant and biocide based on silver-stabilised hydrogen peroxide. It can also be used for air and surface disinfection.

• Azix Plus – a water acidifier made from buffered organic acids that lower water pH, enhancing feed digestion and nutrient absorption while preventing water quality deterioration caused by microorganisms. Enriched with minerals and essential oils, it also improves palatability.

• Dysanzix – a herb-based feed supplement improving pig performance, and supporting microbial gut composition.

Roam Technology also provides dosing and measuring

solutions to ensure correct product usage, along with a training platform and expert guidance from its experienced sales team.

With the reduction of antibiotics, rising consumer expectations, and climate change all influencing livestock farming, Roam Technology is committed to helping UK farmers stay ahead of disease threats while improving efficiency and sustainability.

“This integration ensures that farmers have access to innovative, science-backed solutions to safeguard their animals, businesses, and the future of UK livestock farming. There is no golden bullet to improving animal health, but we hope that by offering the solutions to keep diseases from entering farms through our biodegradable cleaning and disinfectant products, and through our nutritional performance solutions, we can help keep animals healthy, happy, and productive,” Mr Bennet added.

Monitor Farm meeting grass reseeding tips help cut livestock costs

A well-planned reseeding policy in place on-farm will help drive productivity, maximising the benefits of pasture and reducing concentrate inputs.

Borders farmer and grazing specialist Graham Lofthouse discussed how he approached

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reseeding at a recent Stirlingshire Monitor Farm meeting, giving visitors his key tips for success, and looking at the Duncan family’s new approach to grass management.

“The first is to test soil pH where you plan to reseed. A target

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livestock pH of 6.2-6.5 will optimise pasture and your ability to make profit for your business.

“Correct all drainage and compaction issues well ahead of reseeding, as waterlogging will severely hamper grass seedling establishment, and aim for moderate potash and phosphate levels.”

“Graze after six to eight weeks, but test first using the ‘pluck test’, where the leaf should snap without pulling out the root.”

Where weeds can sometimes be an issue on reseeds, he said sheep would often help remove annual weeds, but where the weed burden is high, consider removing clover and then using a nonselective herbicide to control weeds before sowing clover into the sward the following spring.

The Stirlingshire Monitor Farm grass improvement plan has key targets: • Increase kg/DM produced per ha; • Increase metabolisable energy (ME), crude protein (CP) and digestibility of grazed and conserved grass; • Improve utilisation of crop nutrition, both organic and nonorganic; • Lengthen grazing season.

To do this, the Duncan family is working on creating an eightto-10-year grass rotation. There is a focus on improving the most productive ground (silage fields), which will produce higher ME diet for young and growing stock, as well as producing higher ME and CP silage to reduce feed cost and improve growth rates.

Monitor Farmer Rebecca Duncan said: “The longer grazing season will mean we have reduced bought in feed costs. We will also have higher total diet ME and digestibility, so fewer days to sale for lambs and a higher stock carrying capacity, so more kg/ha output.”

Christine Cuthbertson, Monitor Farm regional adviser added: “It was great to hear Graham’s advice for reseeds, as well as looking in depth at Duncan family’s grass improvement plan – it will be really interesting for everyone to see the results of this as it progresses.”

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The

VET Worming of Adult Ewes

By Balfour S Hay BVMS MRCVS Anthelmintic (wormer) resistance is an increasingly worrying threat faced by the sheep industry globally, and therefore it is important to ensure we are all doing our bit to use wormers appropriately. Unfortunately, adult ewes are a group that are frequently over-wormed, and this indiscriminate anthelmintic use promotes the development of resistance.

As a result of exposure earlier in life, healthy adult ewes usually develop a good immunity against gut worms, and therefore should not require routine treatment. The exception to this, however, is around lambing time where this immunity can wane due to the stress of late pregnancy. This is known as the ‘periparturient rise’ occurring approximately 2 weeks before to 6 weeks after lambing. This dip in immunity

can result in an increased output of worm eggs in the ewes’ dung, potentially contaminating the pasture for the susceptible young lambs.

For this reason, it has been recommended to prioritise one annual treatment of ewes at lambing time.

However, blanket treatment of any group of animals promotes resistance. Therefore, we should be aiming to be more selective of which ewes we are worming at lambing time.

Recent evidence suggests that ewes in ideal body condition with adequate protein intake around lambing time are protected from the periparturient rise. Therefore, we should focus on treatment of those ewes under the most nutritional stress - for example thin ewes, triplet bearing ewes, and younger dams who may not yet have full immunity.

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Leaving ewes untreated preserves the anthelminticsusceptible worm population, thereby impeding the development of resistance. Ideally we should aim to leave at least 10% of ewes untreated from each post-lambing grazing group.

As always, there are exceptions to the rule. Ewes in suboptimal body condition or those with underlying health problems resulting in immunosuppression (e.g.

Johnes disease, trace element deficiency, MV) will have an increased susceptibility to gut worms. Ewes can also potentially be affected by the Barber’s Pole Worm (Haemonchus contortus) which is becoming increasingly prevalent in some parts of the UK. Submitting faecal samples to your vets for worm egg counts is often a good first step if you are concerned about worm problems in your ewes.

sheep

Shear sheep early to combat blowfly

The warm and dry spring conditions present the ideal opportunity to shear sheep early to reduce health issues such as blowfly strike. Investing in shearing equipment and starting early can make all the difference.

Changing weather patterns have led to the blowfly season being elongated and less predictable. The warm spring has kicked off the threat early, so shearing and treating sheep promptly will help reduce the impact of blowfly now and later in the year.

“Administering an insect growth regulator (IGR) like those in the CLiK range, can help control blowfly damage and associated losses by preventing the development of the damaging second and third stage larvae,” explains Elanco’s Matt Colston.

In warm weather, eggs that have been laid in the sheep’s fleece can hatch quickly, with damage caused by maggots feeding on the skin in as little as 24-36 hours.

“With conditions currently ideal for blowfly activity, it’s advised to administer a shorter acting IGR, such as CLiK ZIN, to protect flocks ahead of shearing, before following up with a longer acting treatment, such as CLiK EXTRA, for a further 19 weeks of protection post-shearing,” he adds.

The CLiK range of products are the only IGRs with

Fleecebind® protection which sticks to the wool even in damp conditions and spreads from tip to base of the fleece to provide consistent protection.

Experienced sheep shearer, Hefin Rowlands from shearing equipment manufacturer Heiniger, suggests that a close and even cut can greatly reduce the risk of blowfly strike.

“Selecting a handpiece, comb, and cutter that delivers a close, clean cut is key to achieving an even surface for applying an IGR off shears, meaning applications of CLiK applied straight after shearing will effectively grow with the fleece to protect the animal into the season,” he says.

“That’s why investing in quality shearing gear and staying on top of regular maintenance is essential for efficient shearing and effective blowfly prevention,” he adds.

In drier, warmer years, the further benefits of shearing early are largely associated with reducing heat stress. Following lambing, as temperatures build, sheep that have been sheared earlier will deal with the heat better.

“Shearing early enables the fleece to regrow before the higher temperatures experienced in summer.

A common misconception is that sheep with an inch or more of fleece will be less able to cope with heat. In

fact, the presence of a relatively thin fleece in summer helps the sheep to regulate its temperature and protects its skin from direct sunlight,” says Mr Rowlands.

Shearing is beneficial to lambs as well as ewes and can improve growth rate by

encouraging higher dry matter intake.

“Shearing when lambs are below 35 kilos can increase growth rates by around 20 grams per head per day which will have a significant benefit to overall dead, live weight gain,” he concludes.

Positivity needed in face of grim sheep profit figures, says NSA

An 87% drop in lowland cattle and sheep farm income for 2023/24 in the Scottish Government’s Farm Business Survey shows the cost pressures farms have been under in recent times, says the National Sheep Association (NSA).

Higher livestock prices are pleasing to see, but rising costs and productivity challenges have plagued the bottom line in the government’s latest annual reckoning, said Peter Myles, NSA Scottish Region Chairman.

The survey also reveals that Farms in Lesser Favoured Areas (LFA’s), traditionally a sheep stronghold, had also struggled.

For LFA sheep farms, no farms in the survey made a profit without support payments, down from 8% of farms in the previous year

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Mr Myles says: “The survey tells a familiar tale, that after rental figures and manual and managerial labour are imputed into margins, farm businesses struggle to wash their face.

“However, with flock contraction seen in Scotland and 85

sheep the wider UK, there is a growing feeling of jeopardy within the sheep sector, made worse by various land use policies that hinge on destocking upland areas.

“Hills are empty that once had flocks of hundreds or thousands and the worry is that the skills and culture disappear when the sheep do.

“But to run a business, you

must have confidence, and the current lamb trade should be a green flag to those continuing and entering into the industry.

With quick turnovers and low fixed costs, sheep farming is often a good step on to the farming ladder. Let’s hope those with profitable systems aren’t hampered by anti-farming policies.”

Opportunity for GB Sheep Farmers to Screen Ewes for Enzootic Abortion (EAE) MSD Animal Health UK Limited (a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, N.J., USA (NYSE: MRK)) has opened the enzootic abortion (EAE) testing phase of its 2025 FlockCheck diagnostic scheme.

From 1st April 2025, sheep farmers in England, Scotland and Wales have had the opportunity to ask their vet to test their

flocks for exposure to EAE. The toxoplasmosis testing phase opened back in February. This popular subsidised diagnostic service helps farmers identify possible reasons for early lamb losses. It closes at the end of June 2025.

According to sheep farmers, ewe reproductive failure, neonatal lamb disease and mortality are

the three biggest factors limiting better flock productivity1 – with toxoplasmosis and enzootic abortion continuing to be significant causes of these unwanted flock heath issues.

Consequently, GB sheep farmers who find that more than 2% of their flock is barren or aborting this lambing season are being encouraged to contact their vet to

take advantage of the FlockCheck diagnostic scheme.

“From our own 2024 flock health survey of 966 sheep units, we know that more than 30% of GB sheep flocks don’t know their barren ewe rate or are reporting a figure greater than 5% after lambing2.

This is particularly concerning,” said MSD Animal Health veterinary adviser Dr Kat Baxter-Smith.

Call for urgent biosecurity rethink after bird flu detected in sheep Livetec Systems is urging the farming industry to take a closer look at biosecurity, following confirmation of the world’s first case of avian influenza (H5N1) in a sheep on a smallholding in Yorkshire.

The sheep, which tested positive for antibodies through milk and blood samples, showed no clinical signs, but Livetec’s Group technical director, Julian Sparrey, says the case should act as a warning.

“The big question is how the virus got into the sheep in the first place,” he says.

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“Was it wild bird droppings on pasture? Contact with infected domestic poultry?

Transmission due to poor onfarm biosecurity? We just don’t know yet, and that’s what’s worrying.

“It was only picked up because there was already a poultry outbreak on the holding.

Without that, it would have been completely missed.”

With 170 wild bird H5N1 incidents reported in the past month alone, Livetec warns that virus pressure is high – increasing the chances of

livestock exposure through contaminated water, wildlife, and day-to-day farm activity.

Livetec is therefore calling on Defra to expand active surveillance, particularly on mixed-species holdings, to build up a picture of what is happening.

But Mr Sparrey says farmers should act now and not wait for direction.

“Running separate biosecurity protocols for different species is challenging, but not impossible. It’s about thinking practically – for

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example, thinking about where your boots go, what kit you’re sharing, and whether animals’ co-graze,” he adds.

“We’ve always strongly advised against co-grazing ruminants and poultry due to the risks of Salmonella and E. coli transmission between the species. Now AI presents another risk.”

He adds: “This might be a one-off case, or it might be the first sign of something more.

Either way, it’s a reminder that we can’t take excellent biosecurity for granted.”

sheep

Overseas Shearers welcome in the UK

They say that a sheep’s one ambition in life is to die before you’re ready for it; no, not if I can help it!

By Peter Myles, NSA Scotland Chairman

The National Association of Agricultural Contractors (NAAC) is delighted to announce that after months of lobbying, international sheep shearers have a special concession to be able to enter the UK in 2025, meaning that we can again access this vital source of professional and experienced staff to assist UK contractors during the shearing season.

The Minister for Migration and Citizenship agreed to the concession for sheep shearers for a period of one year to cover this shearing season (1 April – 30 June) and a Ministerial Authorisation came into force on 10 April 2025.

Since 2011, the NAAC has worked closely with the Home

Office to successfully manage a special concession for highly skilled, overseas shearers to come to the UK to assist in shearing the UK flock.

The scheme has meant that the UK has been able to welcome non-visa nationals from overseas (particularly New Zealand and Australia) to come for a short, limited period to ensure that sheep are shorn on time, thus protecting their welfare.

Commenting Jill Hewitt, NAAC Chief Executive said, “Sheep shearing is a skilled and physical profession and, whilst we have an excellent resource of UK shearers, NAAC contractors still rely on an input of overseas shearers to carry out an estimated 20% of UK shearing.

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I’d like to think the country’s sheep flock has been living through probably the healthiest era we’ve had, with some of the best vaccines and preventative medicines available today.

We have routine vaccination programmes now. I can’t remember hearing of a case of pulpy kidney, braxy, blackleg, pasteurellosis, and other clostridial diseases.

Outbreaks are extremely rare but can happen when there is a breakdown in protection with a vaccine supply issue.

Sheep scab has returned since we stopped compulsory dipping when it was virtually eradicated. I know there are issues with Organophosphates but personally I’m a great fan of an immersed OP dip.

There may be an abundance of injectables and pour-ons to treat external parasites but the old-fashioned belief “aye there’s nothing to beat the smell of freshly dipped sheep” still holds true in my conscience.

Wormers too have moved on. Gone are the days when one would use a white drench one year then a clear drench the next. I’m glad to say, folk are taking much more care about worm resistance and wormer resistance to prolong the efficiency of the drugs we have within.

Toxo and Enzo vaccines are another useful tool in our armoury to protect from the perfect abortion storm that nobody wants. There is a type of “Bluetongue” jag being used south of the border and with no Schmallenberg defence available, the people in white coats are working in labs around the world trying hard to fight a battle on our behalf.

Now the dedicated scientists at Moredun have come up with a new vaccine for dreaded Louping ill, to replace the old one which has since been taken off the market. Moredun just needs some financial support to enable them to get it into syringes ready to tackle this fatal tick bourn disease that causes so much stress to flocks in upland areas.

Hopefully there are no “anti-vaxxers” like we have seen in parts of the human population And then I can say that a sheep’s one ambition in life is to die before you’re ready for it; no, not now if I can stop it!

For further information, please visit https://www.nationalsheep.org.uk/webinars/

NORTHERN ISLES News

Tower farms and cover crops to be trialled New college director keen to hear from farmers about how research can help them

By Ethan Flett UHI ORKNEY’S rebranded Agronomy and Agriculture Institute is keen to hear from farmers about how it can help tackle some of the problems they face.

Trials involving vertical “tower farms” and the benefits of “cover crops” are among the research initiatives being helmed by institute director Dr Henry Creissen.

After spending seven years with Scottish Rural College in Edinburgh, the researcher moved to Orkney in May last year, and took on the leading position at the institute.

Following a review of the various pieces of agricultural research that have gone on in Orkney, and recent workshops about this, the institute is now looking ahead — renamed to include agriculture as well as agronomy in its title.

Under the leadership of previous director Peter Martin, the Orkney college pioneered in researching bere barley and opening up commercial opportunities to use it in premium drinks.

Speaking to The Orcadian this week, Dr Creissen, whose initial interests were in integrated pest management, said that this work will very much be continuing.

Commerical crops of bere are also being grown at the college to be sold to Bruichladdich Distillery in Islay.

The college team have also recently planted bere as part of 88

Dr Henry Creissen

a trial in Burray. By crossing modern variants of the grain with the ancient crop, researchers are hoping to identify the genes that are responsible for the ability of bere to grow in poor quality soil.

Bere is also of interest, Dr Creissen said, because it is “so different” to the modern varieties, with it having less grain and more straw.

“In Orkney, that’s a desirable trait, because that’s what people want good straw for animal bedding. Thinking about other bedding materials is something I’m interested in as well. Barley is great. Oats can be pretty good as well.”

But, Dr Creissen added, he is keen to explore how fields can be used between September and April, after the barley is harvested, and the silage is cut and stored.

“That soil is exposed to the weather so it can get hammered by the rain, wind erosion, salt spray — it can lose nutrients from the fields as a result of that, and lose topsoil,” said Dr Creissen.

A project the institute is just starting is hoping to solve the problem, by testing cover crops —

crops that aren’t for harvesting, but which are meant to improve the health of the soil.

Using mixes of brassicas, maybe some legumes, and cereals — these would be planted either just before or just after the main crop has been harvested.

The institute director believes there are many advantages to farmers from using cover crops.

Dr Creissen said: “As well as having something protect the soil, you would also potentially put sheep on to graze them — so it’s another forage crop — as well as potentially reducing the need for fertiliser in the following crop because you’ve held on to the nutrients in the field and maybe added a bit more nitrogen with the legume component, if you went for that.”

The Islands Centre for Net Zero has gotten behind the scheme, providing money to go towards buying machinery to be used in the cover crop trials. Farmers wanting to get involved can also get in touch with the institute, which can help with the costs of seed.

Another major project being helmed at UHI Orkney could revolutionise polycrubs and polytunnels, with a vertical growing system.

Thanks to money from Highlands and Islands Enterprise, the institute will be able to buy a polytunnel and explore the possibilities of controlled environment agriculture.

“The system HIE are supporting is what’s called a tower farm,” Dr Creissen said.

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“It’s a hydroponic system — no soil — and it’s a stacked system.”

By farming vertically, the lead researcher says, growers will be able to increase the amount they produce by almost ten times using the same amount of space. Each of the towers that will be used by the college will have the capacity for 44 plants.

“The rationale behind this is that a lot of people have polycrubs and polytunnels in their gardens — it’s a new thing to me. I wasn’t expecting everyone, pretty much, to have one! But, perhaps they’re not being utilised as well?

“Some people say they’re more for relaxing in the sun, but they could do that as well as being very productive, with minimal effort.

The labour puts a lot of people off home-grown produce and rightly so, people have busy lives. But this is a way of taking that out.”

Instead of having to dig soil and water plants, the tower farm pumps the nutrient-rich solution around the roots. At the college, the system will be powered by a solar panel.

Dr Creissen is planning to have the tower farm up and running in a few months time, with the hope being to have it ready to show off during the Orkney International Science Festival in September.

The institute director who has previously worked in agro-forestry in Suffolk, is also keen to explore how trees could have a place on Orkney farms.

“There’s a lot of changes taking place at the moment with

regards to financial support for farming activities in Scotland and that will happen over the next few years,” he explained.

“Some of the measures that will get additional support are things like cover crops and agroforestry is one of them as well.”

With willow growing well in Orkney, Dr Creissen believes there is scope for some innovative work to be done here,

following on from studies that have been done elsewhere in the UK. He said it can used as fuel, for craft work, to improve biodiversity and for providing shelter to livestock.

Because willow has nutrients that can alleviate deficiencies in cobalt, trials have already been undertaken feeding it to lambs.

Work has also been done in

Northern Ireland, Dr Creissen said, which showed that feeding willow to cows can reduce their methane emissions.

The institute director is working with UHI Inverness and hoping that PhD student will explore the potential for willows in Orkney.

“The main thing I want at the moment is farmers willing to be involved in the sort of stuff were

trialling,” Dr Creissen told The Orcadian.

He is also keen to hear from farmers about any problems they’re experiencing, perhaps with a particular pest, or if they are keen to try out a different kind of crop.

For those wanting to raise any queries like this, or to get involved in the cover crop trials, the institute can be contacted on agronomy@ uhi.ac.uk

Farmers and crofters are being encouraged to change castration and tail-docking practices in lambs, with an aim to improve animal health and welfare It follows a Scottish governmentlevel move to clamp down on the traditional rubber rings, which are currently legal until the lamb is seven days old.

Concern has grown that some producers are unable to use the rings before the seven-day deadline has expired.

Now, the SNP administration is seeking to ban the rings by 2028.

SAC Consulting is running a trial that uses more “innovative” systems. It has accessed HIE funding to make special ClipFitter equipment available to producers across the crofting counties.

But an initial toe-in-the-water trial is being run in Shetland and the Black Isle.

Local SAC consultant Osla Jamwal-Fraser said a meeting had already taken place with the crofting discussion group to discuss the plans, and another is planned later this month – although a location for the event has yet to be confirmed.

“The government knows that people use rubber rings well beyond seven days, especially when you think about extensive hill-flocks across the country,” she told Landwise.

“There’s no way that people can be castrating before the seven days are up. It’s obviously not brilliant from a health and welfare perspective.”

The rubber rings are applied using a set of applicators that stretch the ring out and over the tail or scrotum, stopping the blood supply.

What it does not do, however, is sever the nerve – so the practice can still be quite painful for the lamb.

ClipFitter is one of several more-advanced systems aimed at improving animal health and wellbeing which are slowly becoming more widely available.

Mrs Jamwal-Fraser describes it as operating like a bag clip “you might use to close a packet of biscuits”.

It crushes the nerves, so that any pain is stopped very quickly.

Another system – the more imaginatively-named Numnuts – retains the use of a rubber ring, but the applicator uses an anaesthetic that is injected.

“We’ve already had one meeting in Shetland just to share information and talk about the project with the crofting discussion group,” said Mrs Jamwal-Fraser.

“We also have another meeting planned. But that is going to be a practical demonstration based on a croft, where we will have one of the vets from the Rural and Veterinary Innovation Centre in Inverness come up and do a practical demonstration of how to use the ClipFitter system.”

The aim is to lend farmers and crofters the ClipFitter applicators, as well as the clips and various accessories, such as the cradles used to hold the lambs while the applicators are used.

That way, more people can be better informed about the changes before they are implemented by law.

The downside to all these changes is increased cost, with ClipFitter currently coming in at £200 a piece – and that’s without the individual clips, which are 30p each.

However, there are signs that reduced pain is not just better from a health and wellbeing perspective, but also for the animal thriving – which could lead to better prices at the end of the line.

“When the regulatory framework changes people will be better informed.

“But also, the companies which produce alternative systems will have been able to produce a little more at scale.

In association with

www.shetlandtimes.co.uk Tel: 01595 742000

www.orcadian.co.uk Tel: 01856 879000 www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com

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ARTICLE

How to profit from alternative land use

Alternative land uses can benefit farm businesses in multiple ways, boosting both profits and the environment. Options range from paludiculture (wetland crops) and peat restoration to habitat creation and agroforestry, offering farmers innovative solutions to diversify income streams, enhance environmental sustainability, and adapt to evolving challenges in land management. And the Cereals Event will have plenty of practical advice on offer this year.

Held at Heath Farm, Lincolnshire, on 11–12 June 2025, Cereals will feature an extensive catalogue of exhibitors showcasing cutting-edge practices in alternative land use. Visitors can engage with industry experts and gather information on how these approaches are evolving, with valuable opportunities for networking and knowledge sharing.

Agroforestry is the deliberate integration of trees and shrubs into farming systems to create environmental, economic, and social benefits. The Soil Association Exchange will be delving into this topic on its stand at this year’s Cereals Event.

William Leabeater, head of communication at the Soil Association Exchange, says: “With increasing financial support for woodland creation and management, many farmers are considering tree planting as a viable land use change. This trend is particularly noticeable in upland regions, where woodland creation enhances biodiversity, mitigates flooding, and offers long-term revenue opportunities.”

Effects of SFI changes Alternative land uses have been encouraged by the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) but following its sudden closure

many farmers are now exploring alternative land uses to generate new income streams.

“When considering land use changes, it’s essential to prioritise what adds the most value and resilience to your business,” says Mr Leabeater. “Focus on decisions that strengthen and diversify your operation and then explore how available subsidies or financial support can complement these choices — rather than letting subsidies dictate your direction.”

Markets for biodiversity net gain (BNG) and carbon credits have developed rapidly in recent years, enabling farmers to be paid for specific habitat management.

“We have people identifying land for BNG, and it is an emerging market,” says Edward Hutley, partner at Ceres Rural. “But these are long-term arrangements of 30 years, so do carry risk.”

Angus Collet, director at the BNG partnership, adds: “We’ve

been really pleased with the uplift in activity around biodiversity net gain, and the amount of registered habitat banks that are already on the Defra register. It shows that landowners see BNG as an opportunity to diversify and are willing to enter into a longer-term scheme than they are used to.”

Carbon trading has mostly developed through privatelyfunded businesses, some of which are looking at short-term management practices like cover cropping and incorporating straw into the soil to boost organic matter, notes Mr Hutley.

“Every farm requires an element of balance in its portfolio like stocks and shares traders have – short-term, long-term, high-risk, and low-risk. You need to have enough skin in the game that there’s a financial incentive to get it right but not so much that it will be crippling if you get it wrong.”

The Cereals Event will take place from 11 to 12 June 2025 at Heath Farm, Leadenham, Lincolnshire, LN5 0QE. Early bird tickets are £10 for both days of the event. For more information, visit www.cerealsevent.co.uk.

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land & property

Attractive mixed farm with long term development potential in highly accessible location Glenboig Farm, now on the market through Galbraith, is an adaptable mixed farming unit of about 60.9 hectares (150.5 acres), situated in a highly accessible location within central Scotland.

The owners have farmed Glenboig Farm since 1912, initially as tenants, before subsequently purchasing the farm in 1969.

Duncan Barrie, a partner with Galbraith, who is handling the sale said: “This is an excellent opportunity to acquire a well-managed and compact farming operation located in a particularly accessible location.

The farm is equipped with an attractive B-listed farmhouse, a modern three-bedroom bungalow and an extensive and adaptable range of modern and traditional farm buildings. There are two telecom masts providing an additional source of income, and the farmland is all in good heart and within a ring fenced block. There is great potential for the purchaser to take on this established and versatile landholding. The location is

noted for its accessibility, being less than half an hour from the centre of Glasgow.”

Glenboig Farmhouse offers spacious and attractive accommodation over three levels, including a dining kitchen, two public rooms, two bedrooms and a large attic room, with scope to further reconfigure the internal layout via the bothy area which is accessed via a separate staircase and includes a living room and bedroom with en-suite bathroom.

The farmhouse benefits from a large and private garden area, with areas of lawn and timber decking.

The bungalow, Glenheath, was built in 1982 and includes a spacious kitchen, utility room, dining room, large living room, and three bedrooms, plus a large well cared for garden and a double garage.

Glenboig Farm is equipped with an extensive range of

modern and traditional farm buildings which are situated adjacent to the farmhouse and to the north of the bungalow, all well maintained.

There are two telecom masts on the land, one of which is currently let for £2,250 per annum and the other is let for £4,000 per annum (on a year to year basis and subject to active lease renewal discussions). The telecom masts are situated on the western periphery of the farm.

The farmland extends to approximately 60.92 Ha (150.53 Acres) and comprises a productive mix of arable and grassland which has been used for grazing livestock and for hay and haylage production. The land is predominantly classified by the James Hutton Institute as Grade 3.2, with a small area of Grade 5.3. The fields are well laid out and can easily accommodate

modern machinery, with the majority having access to mainsfed water troughs.

Glenboig Farm is situated on the edge of the village of Glenboig in North Lanarkshire, and some of the land may present longer term development opportunities, subject to obtaining necessary planning consents.

The village of Glenboig has a good range of day to day amenities including a primary school, while the nearby towns of Coatbridge and Cumbernauld offer a wider range of services.

The farm benefits from nearby connections to the M73, M80 and M8 motorways providing excellent links to Glasgow (12 miles), Edinburgh (44 miles) and Stirling (21 miles).

Glenboig Farm is for sale through Galbraith for Offers Over £1,350,000.

For further information please contact Caroline Middleton Gordon, Lorna Gardner or Vikki Scott at Media House caroline@mediahouse.co.uk / lorna@mediahouse.co.uk / victoria@mediahouse.co.uk www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com

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SCOTTISH COUNTRY LIFE Outdoor Learning - an essential part of the school curriculum?

By Jill Stewart, Campaigns Officer Scottish Countryside Alliance Time and again it is subjects such as the arts, outdoor education and music that is cut from the school budget owing to lack of funding, yet these topics should be an essential part of a student’s school day to provide an enriching and fulfilling education for our young people. Are we failing their development into wellrounded members of society by eroding the very subjects that many adults use as a way to improve their mental and physical health and wellbeing.

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Take outdoor education as an example. When I was at school many moons ago, I was lucky enough to take part in a week-long camp to Dounans in Aberfoyle. This was my first time away from my family, and what an adventure I had!

The experience stayed with me and taught me about resilience, teamwork, learning new skills, and empathy towards others. It also gave me a love of the outdoors and to this day I still enjoy wandering across the hills and mountains of Scotland as often as I can.

Liz Smith MSP recently announced her Members Bill for Schools (Residential Outdoor Education) (Scotland) Bill, which hopes to introduce legislation to provide government funded residential outdoor education for all state and grantaided schools in Scotland.

Currently only a quarter of Scotland’s primary pupils and a third of secondary pupils attend residential outdoor education.

We believe, like many other organisations that outdoor education is vitally important

Jill Stewart

for all children, regardless of their background and social circumstances. The benefits of providing residential outdoor education to every pupil is well documented, including benefits for mental wellbeing, improved self-worth, increased social interaction and confidence. The outdoor learning environment will also introduce children to Scotland’s plentiful outdoor spaces and the many activities and sports on offer, such as fishing, shooting, bushcraft and more, which they may not be able to experience otherwise without the necessary government funding.

Children and young people with additional support needs should have the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of outdoor learning activities. With some forward planning and the right support in place, their participation can be made possible. While there may be additional costs involved, it’s important that the government remains committed to getting it right for every child.

The Countryside Alliance currently run a hugely successful Fishing for Schools initiative, which seeks to educate children from a variety of backgrounds and abilities, struggling to cope with the daily pressures of life.

Since its inception in 2007, Fishing for Schools has been dedicated to transforming the lives of disadvantaged

SCOTTISH COUNTRY LIFE children and young people by taking them out of the classroom and into the countryside. The programme harnesses the art of fishing as a powerful platform to cultivate essential life skills such as communication, teamwork, problem solving, and resilience. The Fishing for Schools team support and nurture young people as they discover the world of angling— both as a recreational pursuit and a unique pathway to learning. Learning should take place both inside the classroom and in the great outdoors, ensuring that education is a transformative journey, encompassing not only academic achievements but also personal growth and development.

It is initiatives such as this that can bring hugely positive benefits to the lives of children and young people. What is not to like about getting outside, casting a line at a nearby river or loch and simply being present with nature? This experience could mark the beginning of a young person’s journey toward a career in the countryside—one they might never have considered without the opportunity to engage in outdoor education through their school. We need our young people to live and work in rural areas to maintain a thriving and economically rich countryside, by showing them that they can have a fulfilling career in farming, forestry, conservation, gamekeeping, fishing, or land management.

This is achievable with the support and growth of initiatives such as the Scottish Government’s Learning About Forests (LEAF) programme and Thrive Outdoors, as well as organisations like NatureScot and Learning through Landscapes.

Ms Smith presented a compelling and confident case for her Bill, which gained the support of the majority in the Scottish Parliament. However, the issue of funding for these residential activities sparked

considerable debate among all parties. Encouragingly, MSPs from across the chamber expressed a shared view that funding should be identified and allocated to support this service. Jamie Greene MSP, posed the question: “How much money would the national health service save if young people go on to lead better, healthier and happier lives? How much

money would the justice system save if young people were less likely to interact with it, or with the police, courts or even prisons? How much money would social services or the third sector save if their interventions were enhanced or even replaced by residential learning experiences?”

This is a very interesting argument, and one which the government need to

consider very carefully. The Scottish Countryside Alliance have always advocated for outdoor educational learning experiences. This Bill can work and has to work. After all, children and young people are the future caretakers of our wonderful countryside and environment, and we must help to develop a love of nature and the outdoors for every child in Scotland.

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forestry

Fife firm outpaces UK nations’ woodland creation

Native woodland expansion surpasses Northern Ireland and Wales combined AN ENTERPRISING Scottish company has completed more native woodland creation in the past year than has been created in the entirety of Northern Ireland and Wales combined – with its sights set on further growth.

Kirkcaldy-based Akre delivered more than 1100 hectares of new native woodland in 2023 - 2024 – outstripping the 430 hectares planted in Northern Ireland and the 640 hectares in Wales.

The milestone comes amid growing investment into natural capital projects to reduce atmospheric carbon and increase biodiversity, including Akre’s client, Aberdeen.

Akre is the UK’s only business that can look after every element of the process in-house, from growing the trees and project management right through to the registering, retiring and trading of carbon credits.

Its ultra-efficient tree nursery in Fife is the world’s first to be verified carbon-negative – and is able to produce more than seven million saplings per year.

Renwick Drysdale, Managing Director of Akre, said: “While carbon markets face scrutiny, the reality on the ground is clear: responsible corporate investment is making a massive impact.

“Our model proves that largescale afforestation can be efficient, transparent, and highly effective.”

Akre’s rapid expansion aligns with major global commitments to reforestation. LEGO is reforesting one million acres in the Mississippi catchment, while Google, Meta, Microsoft, and Salesforce have pledged to finance 20 million tonnes of nature-based carbon removal by 2030. The Bezos Earth Fund is committing $22.8 million to restore 600,000 hectares of critical landscapes in Africa.

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Renwick added: “Our work has already facilitated more than £21 million investment into Scottish natural capital projects, ensuring investment delivers genuine environmental and financial returns.

“Our approach is demonstrating that large-scale woodland creation can be costeffective and scalable, while also providing real, measurable benefits to biodiversity and climate resilience.”

That £21 million figure includes £13.5 million in land acquisitions, £5 million in project development, and £2.5 million in infrastructure – laying the foundation for continued scale.

By integrating advanced technology with on-the-ground expertise, Akre has driven the cost of planting down by £750 per hectare compared to traditional methods while improving the quality of trees being planted.

The company’s climatecontrolled tree production system, the first of its kind, allows it to grow high-quality trees faster while

ensuring long-term resilience. With a patent-pending environmental control system, Akre is setting a new standard for efficiency in large-scale tree propagation.

The UK government has set a target of 30,000 hectares of new woodland per year with the Committee on Climate Change advising this should be 55,000 hectares, but recent figures show delivery at just 20,000 hectares. At a European level, just 0.7% of the three billion trees pledged between 2020 and 2030 have been planted.

Renwick said: “We are proving that Scotland can take the lead in tackling these challenges. This isn’t just about hitting targets – it’s about delivering real solutions that can scale.

“Our model ensures every tree planted is backed by rigorous planning, robust investment, and long-term impact.”

Akre’s work spans four key areas: tree production, propagation technology, project sourcing and design, and natural capital asset management. By offering a fully integrated model, the company

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is removing barriers to entry, and making reforestation projects more accessible for investors, landowners, charities and corporate stakeholders alike.

Beyond its external impact, Akre is leading by example. A Zero Waste Scotland audit confirmed that the company has reduced its own annual emissions by 77%, cutting from 342.8 CO2e to 92.56 CO2e through, battery storage, and solar PV panels before shifting to 100% renewable energy from the grid.

To offset residual emissions, Akre has retired 240 verified woodland carbon units, securing carbon-negative status.

The company has committed to conducting annual audits and re-investing in offsets, where necessary, every three years to maintain and improve sustainability.

As Akre looks to scale its solution it is developing projects abroad. The most notable of which is the restoration of the land surrounding the headwaters of the Okavango delta in Southeastern Angola. The project area covers 600,000 hectares and has the potential to be one of the most significant woodland restoration projects in the world for biodiversity, carbon and the local community.

Renwick added: “The shift towards nature-based solutions is no longer just an ethical choice – it’s an economic imperative.

“The organisations that embrace efficiency, transparency, and impact will be the ones that succeed. Akre is proving that largescale investment in nature can deliver both environmental and financial returns, and we’re only just getting started.”

Find out more about Akre here: https://www.akre.co.uk/

forestry Confor backs plan to build resilience in Scotland’s forests

Are your trees healthy?

A ‘Routemap to Resilience for Scotland’s Forests and Woodlands’ has been launched today with input from Confor and industry.

Rural Affairs Secretary Mairi Gougeon has said “doing nothing is not an option” when it comes to securing the future of Scotland’s forests from the effects of climate change.

With recent examples of violent storms, increasing temperatures, droughts, wildfires and more tree pests and diseases, a new ‘routemap’ has been published

by Scottish Forestry which will provide the direction needed for building resilient forests.

The routemap, the first of its kind in the UK, outlines a number of key actions to help the nation’s woodlands resist, adapt, respond and recover from the various current climate related threats.

The resilience actions cover both immediate and long-term priorities over the next 10 years.

Ms Gougeon said: “Over the past few years we have had plenty of evidence that the global effects of climate change are increasing the frequency of extreme weather events.

“In Scotland we are seeing hotter drier summers, warmer wetter winters and vicious storms with damaging winds. We need to future proof our forest and woodlands against this.

“Doing nothing is not an option and I am pleased that much

work has already taken place to counter this and make our forests more resilient. But we can and must do more.

“The routemap published today provides a strategic and comprehensive action plan with clear work to be undertaken to boost our forests for the future.”

The plan is to prioritise work on the following three areas to help Scotland’s forests and woodlands cope with climate change: Forest planning: introduce numerous measures to help reduce future risks and threats.

Species choice and silviculture: choosing and growing tree species that will thrive well into the future; and Knowledge exchange: sharing best practice, training and publishing more resources.

Actions in the plan are wide ranging and include using scenario planning, use of new technologies like AI, eDNA and satellite data, more use of ‘smart silviculture’ and better monitoring and surveillance for ecosystems.

Ensuring seed availability, tree improvement programmes, developing silvicultural knowledge, the co-ordination of genetic resources, and a list of tree species for the future are all on the agenda, as well as knowledge workshops where Scotland can learn from other countries.

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If

you

have

trees

or

include discoloured foliage,

important to keep an eye out

bleeds, exit holes, or cankers.

woodland on your land, it’s for any signs of pests and

shoot or branch dieback, resin If

you

spot

anything

diseases. Monitoring trees

suspicious, please log a Tree

adopting good biosecurity

website.

and woodlands regularly and practices any

will

problems

help

early

spot and

reduce the risk of damaging

pests or pathogens being moved around and getting a

foothold in new areas. Good

biosecurity practices include

cleaning footwear, vehicles and kit, particularly if you’re moving

between

woodlands.

different

Spring is a good time

of year to look at trees for symptoms

of

pests

and

diseases. Tell-tale signs can

Alert on the Forest Research The

TreeAlert

webform will prompt you for

details about the location, site

and

symptoms,

and

invite you to upload three

good photographs showing the

symptoms

in

close-

up, their whereabouts on the tree, plus the affected

tree in context. All reports are followed up by Forest Research

diagnosticians.

You can find out more about priority

pests,

diseases

and their symptoms on the Observatree website.

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estate Rural organisations sound alarm over muirburn licensing rollout and wildfire risk Leading rural organisations are urging the Scottish Government to adopt a pragmatic approach to the introduction of muirburn licensing — or risk exacerbating the growing threat of wildfires across Scotland.

With the muirburn season closing earlier this week (April 15)[1], Scottish Land & Estates, NFU Scotland and the Scottish Gamekeepers Association are among those raising serious concerns over the new licensing system being introduced under the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024.

The warning comes in the wake of a spate of wildfires across Scotland last week— part of an alarming trend that is becoming more frequent and severe as the impacts of climate change intensify and the amount of combustible vegetation – also known as fuel load – increases.

The Scottish Fire & Rescue Service has publicly recognised controlled muirburn, when carried out by trained professionals, as a vital land management tool to reduce vegetation fuel loads and mitigate the risk of uncontrolled wildfires.

While the Scottish Government plans to implement a new muirburn licensing regime ahead of the 2025–2026 season, rural stakeholders say the complex technical requirements and application processes expected to be in place before September 15 this year will leave many farmers, land managers, 96

and gamekeepers unable to obtain a licence in time. This, they warn, could lead to large areas of land being unmanaged— increasing fuel loads which dramatically exacerbates the risk of serious wildfires.

Concerns centre around the need to avoid muirburn on areas of ‘deep’ peat. With no national mapping data available to identify where deep peat is present or absent, vast swathes of land face being classified as “uncertain”—triggering the need for thousands of physical soil tests before a licence can be issued.

The organisations said they had already devoted significant time and resources to NatureScot’s Muirburn Code Working Group in an effort to help shape a workable licensing system. However, with the clock now ticking, they warn that there is still no sign of a practical solution being put in place in time for next year. Ross Ewing, Director of Moorland at Scottish Land & Estates, said: “There is widespread agreement that muirburn, when done responsibly and in line with best practice, plays a vital role in preventing uncontrolled wildfires. We support a workable licensing system, but right now the process being proposed is overly complex and impossible to deliver within the time available. If muirburn is blocked due to licensing delays, we are sleepwalking into a heightened wildfire risk next season.”

Iain Hepburn, Accredited Muirburn Trainer and committee member of the Scottish Gamekeepers Association, said: “The sheer scale of surveying required—on some estates running to thousands of sample points—makes it practically impossible to meet the current timetable. Gamekeepers want to do the right thing, but we are being set up to fail. If this is not addressed, we could see vast areas of land go unmanaged, increasing fuel loads and heightening the danger of devastating wildfires. We know

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from the recent spate of wildfires that they place a significant burden on the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and put firefighters at significant risk.”

DUNCAN Macalister, Vice President of NFU Scotland, said: “This is a textbook example of policy getting ahead of practicality.

Rushing licensing through for this September will not only burden farmers and land managers with unrealistic demands, but it will actively undermine Scotland’s resilience to wildfire. Ministers must pause, listen, and work with the sector to get this right.”

estate Wildlife Management Goes Hand in Hand with Sustainable Farming In his opening words at the Wildlife Estates ScotlandAssembly recently, Brian Richardson, UK Head of Agriculture, Virgin Money, took a global view of the future to embrace environmental, economic and social sustainability.

Held at the 6,500 acre Hopetoun Estate near Edinburgh, the 2025 Wildlife Estates Scotland Annual Assembly attracted a packed audience to a day of networking, sharing experience and listening to a range of expert speakers.

Managing wildlife on similar estates in Scotland was of course the focus of the Assembly, but in his remarks as headline sponsor, Virgin Money’s Head of Agriculture put this key aspect of

environmental management into the context of the wider drive to raise the standard of best practice right across the spectrum of land management and farming.

“It is great to see the focus being given to promoting best practice in wildlife and habitat, encompassing all the various areas that covers and bringing them together in a practical and meaningful way that moves land management and agriculture forward.

“That commitment to best practice is essential so improvement can be seen and standards raised that align with wider goals on climate and biodiversity. But conservation has to be integrated with other

activities such as farming, forestry and tourism, which are very often generating the income to support the wider work on the estate.

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“The farming part of land management has been downplayed in recent years, but we should remember the importance of producing healthy

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estate food at what is incredible value for money for the UK consumer.

Estates need positive legislative and financial support for long term sustainability, and we must not forget the social and economic aspects of what is being done to provide vital employment in rural communities and bring communities closer together with the focus on communication and wellbeing.”

As one of the major lenders in rural and agricultural business across the UK, Virgin Money is deeply committed to the success of this sector, said Brian Richardson, and the bank is supporting an enormous range of rural enterprises.

“Wildlife Estates Scotland has a very progressive set of aims, and within that there is plenty of room for individual members to tailor their ambitions to cover their own particular circumstances.

This flexibility is important because, while it‘s important to set ambitions, it’s also essential that each business can decide where their own focus and priorities should be.

“More broadly, every aspect of wildlife, environmental and economic sustainability has to be set in the context of climate challenge and our goals to reduce carbon emissions. Thankfully, the debate has matured around biodiversity and an understanding

that progress made across land management and farming will support a movement to a low carbon economy.

“Using that best practice sharing and knowledge base to drive education and evidenced improvement brings us back to today’s Assembly and the excellent work of Wildlife Estates Scotland.

It is a vital tool in moving land management forward in a progressive way and leading to that improvement in biodiversity.

“Like many organisations, at Virgin Money we have our own ambitious targets so we can play our part in supporting the wider economy to meet its climate goals.

Finance, in many projects, will

play a part and it is always easier to support projects when they can demonstrate a direction of travel and demonstrate public good.

WES is certainly playing its part in delivering evidence-based work to support wider stakeholders’ aims and goals.

“Last October, Virgin Money became part of the UK’s largest mutual, the Nationwide Building Society. We also became part of their mission to make banking fairer, more rewarding and for the good of society. That last part particularly will drive our future growth and fits perfectly with our involvement with the aims and achievements of Wildlife Estates Scotland.”

NFU Scotland urges amendments to Land Reform (Scotland) Bill Ahead of the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill Stage 1 Debate, which took place on 26 March, NFU Scotland wrote to MSPs to highlight several concerns the membership organisation has about elements of the Bill as it stands and push for changes to address these concerns.

The key concerns and recommendations highlighted by NFU Scotland were: • Land Management Plans: Maintain the 3,000-hectare threshold to avoid burdening smaller landholdings with unnecessary costs and bureaucracy.

• Lotting Provisions: Current proposals could lead to costly taxpayer compensation.

Support the exemption for “non-controversial smallscale transactions.”

• Resumption: Ensure tenants are left no better and no worse off. Avoid retrospective changes to agricultural tenancies to maintain confidence in land letting.

• Community Land Acquisition: Review existing provisions before introducing new measures to prevent business disruption.

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• Scottish Land Commission: Keep the Commission advisory, not regulatory.

• Sustainable and Regenerative Agriculture: Reference the Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Act’s Code of Practice without making it definitive.

• Diversification: Support voluntary diversification to ensure agricultural business viability.

Duncan Macalister, NFU Scotland Vice-President explained, “NFU Scotland has welcomed the opportunity to engage with the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee during its considerations of the Bill. While supporting some elements of the Bill, we have raised concerns about the Bill as it currently stands and are urging MSPs and Scottish Ministers to consider and address some key issues around Land Management Plans, Lotting Provisions, Resumption, Community Land Acquisition, Scottish Land Commission, Sustainable and Regenerative Agriculture, and Diversification.

“Our concerns highlight the potential unintended

consequences for farmers and crofters of specific elements of the Bill if left as they are. We are seeking and emphasising the need for balanced rights and responsibilities for all land users.

“NFU Scotland supports responsible land ownership and management.

Farmers and crofters are vital to local communities and the socio-

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economic fabric of Scotland.

The Scottish food and drink sector generates over £16 billion in turnover and employs over 130,000 people. With 40% of Scotland’s agricultural land classified as High Nature Value farmland, farmers and crofters play a key role in sustaining and enhancing the land’s environmental worth.”

estate

crofting Looking ahead to the summer

Farms & estates affirm their commitment to achieving Scotland’s 30x30 nature target

By Donna Smith After a successful round of training during the start of the year that was part funded by the Scottish Government Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund, we were delighted to get confirmation recently of a second year of funding and are now busy planning those events for later in the year.

It was clear that there is huge appetite for this sort of course, aimed at helping crofters learn both from experts and each other about how they can make their croft both more environmentally and financially sustainable. With many changes coming down the line in terms of support for agriculture, trees and horticulture, the power of getting producers in a room sharing their own experiences, good and bad, is a hugely important thing.

We are also looking ahead to see what other training we might deliver.

Crofting is so diverse, there are many things we could

do, and we will therefore continue to build a program based on what people are asking us for.

On the policy front, we had a meeting with the Minister for Agriculture, Crofting Commission, Scottish Government Crofting Bill Team and the NFUS to discuss our concerns about the Crofting Bill and we welcomed the Minister’s recent visits to Lewis, Harris and Skye so that he could build a better understanding of crofting on the ground. We also had a further meeting with him on 1st April to discuss the Whole Farm Plan and Suckler Beef Scheme and are looking forward to working with his officials to ensure that these schemes remain workable for crofters in the coming years and do not disproportionately disadvantage them.

We are now looking forward to the summer round of agricultural shows which will kick off for us at the Royal Highland Show, maybe we’ll see you there.

www.crofting.org

Landowners stand ready and willing to help Scotland deliver a commitment to protect 30% of the land and seas for nature by 2030 – but further detail will be required on the tools proposed by government to meet this ambitious goal.

Enhancing biodiversity, conservation and habitat restoration was the central focus of the 2025 WES Annual Assembly, held recently at Hopetoun House.

Sponsored by Virgin Money, alongside Caledonian Climate, Savills, NatureScot, and Food Integrity Assurance, the event brought together land managers, conservation experts, and policymakers for a day of insight, discussion, and collaboration.

Amongst those addressing delegates was Dr Alasdair Allan, Acting Minister for Climate Action, and Brian Richardson, Head of Agriculture at Virgin Money UK. One of the central talking points at the assembly was the

role of ‘Other Effective AreaBased Conservation Measures’ (OECMs) in supporting Scotland’s commitment to protecting 30% of its land for nature by 2030.

NatureScot are currently examining the implementation of OECMs in Scotland, which the IUCN describes as ‘geographically defined areas distinct from traditional protected areas but managed in ways that yield positive, sustained, and long-term outcomes for biodiversity conservation, including associated ecosystem functions.’

With c. 300,000ha of land fully accredited by Wildlife Estates Scotland, WES members are ideally placed to meet the OECM criteria. WES has been actively working with NatureScot and the Scottish Government to explore the potential for WESaccredited estates to achieve OECM designation but said greater clarity is needed on how the balance of regulation and

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estate benefits to land-based businesses through the scheme would be achieved.

Miles Montgomerie, chair of Wildlife Estates Scotland, said: “OECMs offer an opportunity to formally recognise the outstanding conservation work already being carried out by private land managers across Scotland.

WES-accredited estates have long been at the forefront of habitat restoration, biodiversity enhancement, and sustainable land use. Achieving OECM status would provide well-earned recognition and additional incentives for estates that are actively contributing to Scotland’s ambitious conservation targets.

“Our rigorous assessment process already meets many of the key requirements for OECM designation. An opportunity exists for us to work closely with NatureScot to streamline the process, ensuring that WES members who have demonstrated best practices in land stewardship can seamlessly gain OECM recognition without unnecessary duplication of effort.

“What we would like to see is greater clarity on how OECM and WES will fit together, as well as ensuring that farmers and landowners who have already been going above and beyond for nature see tangible benefits from the scheme. Whether through enhanced funding opportunities, regulatory recognition, or increased public awareness of

their conservation contributions, we must make sure that OECM status is an asset rather than an administrative burden to ensure its success in the long-term.”

Mr Montgomerie concluded: “OECMs represent an exciting opportunity, and I am confident that our members will continue to lead the way in sustainable land management and biodiversity conservation. The assembly has been a key step forward in our efforts to integrate WESaccredited estates into Scotland’s broader conservation framework.

Our appreciation goes to Dr Allan, our sponsors, speakers and attendees for making the event so valuable.”

Brian Richardson, UK Head of Agriculture at Virgin Money, said: “The work being done by Wildlife Estates Scotland and its members is a great example of how land management can integrate conservation with sustainable business practices.

Best practice in wildlife and habitat management is essential not just for improving biodiversity, but also for aligning with wider climate goals in a way that is practical and evidence-based.

At Virgin Money, we recognise that achieving these ambitious conservation targets requires collaboration, clear frameworks, and a supportive financial and legislative environment. We are proud to support WES and its members as they take a leading role in delivering Scotland’s 30x30 vision.”

FARMING SCOTLAND MAGAZINE Next issue out July 2025 Subscription page 113 www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com

GWCT Advisory Services offers second opinion and detailed peatland mapping for those applying for muirburn licences The Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024 introduced a new licensing scheme for making muirburn in Scotland and NatureScot has re-affirmed its intention to have the new scheme ready ahead of the 2025 burning season starting on 15 September.

A crucial provision of the new scheme is that NatureScot will grant separate licences for burning on non-peatland (less than 40cm of peat depth) and on peatland (more than 40cm).

The legislation allows fewer licensable purposes for burning on peatland, and it is therefore expected that it will be more challenging to obtain a licence for these areas compared to nonpeatland.

To help applicants identify areas of peatland and nonpeatland on their ground, NatureScot is providing a Peatland Map as part of the

online application. However, its underlying spatial dataset is relatively coarse, meaning areas with a significant amount of non-peatland may still be classified as peatland if the average peat depth is thought to exceed 40cm. As a result, obtaining muirburn licences for these areas may be more difficult.

GWCT Advisory Services in Scotland offer a Muirburn Planning Services to assist estates in obtaining muirburn licences and has developed spatial datasets over several years through collaboration with estates. These datasets operate at a much finer scale than NatureScot’s Peatland Map and take into account other environmental factors important for planning muirburn. Moreover, peat depths indicated by our datasets are then confirmed through on-site peat-depth surveys using specialised equipment.

More information on GWCT’s Muirburn Planning Services can be found at www.gwctadvisoryscotland.co.uk or by contacting scottishadvisory@gwct.org.uk.

www.gwct.org.uk/auchnerran/

BOOK SERIALISATION

The Natural World

By Robin Noble

As children, the spectacle of the Assynt wildlife had made a great impression on us; the regular soaring overhead of the local buzzards, the very rare and exciting appearance over our cottage of a golden eagle, the curious fulmars that came ever closer on the red cliffs of Stoer, these were the sightings that brightened our days. One splendid view I remember from my teens,

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fishing with my father on one of the innumerable lochs in the wonderful hinterland. We were fishing from the shore, sheltered by a low bank, when behind that bank we could hear a harsh cackling. Before we had time even to react to the noise (which we both recognised), two birds swept low overhead, still calling loudly, long necks outstretched, somehow almost reptilian in their

complex and dramatic black and white. These were black-throated divers, and they were splendid, primitive, worthy denizens of their magnificent landscape.

I have always looked out for raptors, and still enjoyed the sight of the buzzards wheeling above the cottage as they climbed on the thermals. One day I was chopping wood when the noise of hoodie crows made me look

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up to see two of them audaciously mobbing a harassed immature eagle, which was heading up the glen as fast as he could. It was up there, towards the great sandstone cliffs of Quinag, that I sat one day on the damp ground, simply admiring the view across the two fine lochs, when I became aware of movement on the face of the isthmus between them.

Through the binoculars I then

BOOK SERIALISATION watched, perhaps for the next half hour, a golden eagle, large and impressive, a female I think, walking around the rough bank and shore. Just occasionally, she flapped those great wings once or twice, to help her over some bushy heather, but most of the time she was actually walking, stiff-legged like an old man with bad knees.

She spent a while poking her fine head, sun glinting on the gold, under the heather and a peaty bank. I could not imagine what she was doing, but a friend, wise in the ways of eagles and devoted to them, suggested she might be hunting for adders, which were certainly known in the glen – although I suppose she would not be averse to slow worms either.

Once she went right down to the water’s edge and dipped her beak in the loch. I presumed that this was simply drinking, but gather that such an action has very rarely been recorded.

There is no doubt that this was an unusual and privileged view of one of our greatest birds, but there is equally no doubt that it happened simply by chance, like most of my wonderful sightings at home. I was just there at the right time. This was equally true of some of the amazing views I had of mammals in these same

years. Otters I saw at intervals, sometimes with even a year or so intervening, and in very different circumstances and locations.

One leapt out of the seaweedcovered, ochre-yellow rocks as I rowed a dinghy silently in a tidal backwater, while the next I discovered quite far inland. I was walking in an area of rough heather ground on a hot day, and hauled myself up to a small summit in the chaos of gneiss hills, when I noticed something moving in a very narrow burn, almost a ditch but quite natural, a short and tiny watercourse that led from one wee lochan to another.

There was something brown, speckled perhaps, splashing around, and I descended quietly to the burnside and walked slowly towards the commotion.

At first I was thinking vaguely that it must be a female mallard, caught somehow, maybe in a snare, and making a real effort to escape. As I got closer, I realised that it was in fact an otter, or, at least, most of one, its head under the peaty bank much of the time as it energetically pursued – what? – a small fish perhaps, a vole, or even a frog. Eventually, inevitably, it looked up and at me; I was merely six feet away, perhaps within a critical distance

as far as it was concerned. I remained immobile, trying not to breathe, and it looked at me in a very puzzled way, before moving slowly downstream. Three times it stopped, stood up and watched me, apparently still mystified as to what I might be, before returning to the safety of the dark waters of the nearby loch.

Foxes I met rarely, always out on the open hill, but other species surrounded me in considerable numbers. I had actually, of course, been present when the first badger sett in the parish had been discovered, and in the intervening thirty or forty years, their numbers had considerably increased. They were now often seen in broad daylight, and again I delighted in trying to get close to them. While in the cottage one sunny day, I looked along the track towards the gate to the main road, only to see a pair of badgers approaching along it. They were obviously quite young, sleek and slim, and like puppies, jostled and shoved at each other until they dived off the track into the long meadow grass, where something seemed to occupy their attention. Determined to see what was going on, I went quietly outside and crept along the grass in the middle of the track until I was some six feet away,

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where I crouched and watched.

The young animals, beautiful and clean in their black and white, were pulling at the flower heads of red clover which they ate with all the signs of real enjoyment.

So fixed was their attention on this that I was eventually able to retreat towards the cottage without them seeing me. I found it very interesting that within this period of, say, forty years maximum, and in the setting of the sparsely populated parish of Assynt, badgers had returned to a diurnal life, although I did still often see them in the car headlights at night, and some, sadly, were killed on the road. Another view of badgers close to was rather different. I was, again, outside, stacking wood, when I heard a truly horrible commotion somewhere behind the cottage, a noise between snarling and screaming. I went quietly through to the back field, where the steep hillside descends to the flat meadow, to see a pair of badgers ahead of me, rolling downhill, trying very hard to fix their powerful jaws around each other’s necks. Again, they were so intent on this murderous task that they were quite unaware of me, and again I stopped when about six feet from them and watched.

Quite soon, I could not stand the noise, so I said, quietly, ‘Oh, do shut up, the pair of you,’ or some such stupidity, at which they stopped instantly, took one look, and headed off fast in different directions, seemingly unharmed by their ferocious battle.

Many such sightings were of single or paired creatures, and, as I have indicated, they were often at really close quarters. Apart from providing me with an insight into aspects of their behaviour of which I had previously been unaware, they gave me a close view of their beauty, their strong sleek profiles, their glossy pelts (or plumage), their fitness and alertness. But more than this aesthetic quality, there was almost always a feeling, on my side, that these were animals in their own landscape, competent and belonging in their own world in a way that we humans hardly ever do, a way that I craved, wanted so much for myself.

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Travel Scotland

Carnoustie Capers

By Janice Hopper Soft fruits, cereals and the sea there’s more to Carnoustie than golf! On the way into town, don’t miss the National Trust for Scotland’s Barry Mill, one of the few water-powered corn mills in the UK. Alongside an endearing mouse treasure hunt for kids, agriculture and food production are brought to life. Outdoors, visitors spot the wheel turning and the water supplying the power to the picturesque red-roofed building.

Inside, guests see shelling and grinding stones, a sack hoist to lift grain for processing, a winnowing machine, milling sieves and a stove to power the drying process.

Display boards explain that ‘prior to the perfection of potato farming in the early 1800s, people in Scotland ate a largely grain-based diet’ such as oatmeal, barley, peas and beans. With the banning of hand querns in a 1284 Act of Parliament, the people lost an element of control over food production, and the local mill became a vital source of food and survival. The concept of ‘thirlage’ bound locals to bring the grain they grew to the mill for grinding, and pay whatever fees were levied, thereby preventing ordinary people from personally milling their own crop. Meal was even used as currency, with tenant farmers paying their rent in meal, and a worker’s wages could comprise of meal, milk and potatoes.

Barry Mill also reveals local maps of the late 18th century where only three types of properties were significant enough to be highlighted - churches, homes of the landed gentry and, of course, mills. The last owners of Barry Mill were the Gunn family who worked the property from the 1920s until 1982. Ownership passed to the NTS in 1988 and the site welcomed visitors from 1992 onwards. Optional guided tours are included in ticket entry to Barry 104

Barry Mill courtesy of the National Trust for Scotland

Carnoustie Championship Golf Course courtesy of VisitAngus

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Travel Scotland Mill, and for those welcomed by volunteer Irene, you’ll walk away with a list of everyday sayings connected to mill life - nose to the grindstone, millstone round your neck, grind to a halt, daily grind, and run of the mill (nts.org.uk/ visit/places/barry-mill).

For local foodie pitstops drop

by Carnoustie Farm Shop for fresh produce when you need it, from soup to fruit and veg. At East Scryne Fruit we’re talking berries, ice cream, playground and a tearoom.

It operates seasonal hours so ideal for those summer months. It’s also one of five sites on the Angus Berry Trail, others farms include Balhungie, Charleton, Cononsyth and Downieken (appetiteforangus. com/angusberrytrail).

In the centre of town, JM Bakery whips up traditional baked goods and pies, or hang out in the relaxed and informal Gather Cafe and Deli. The modern Rookery is a smart restaurant option, housed at Carnoustie Golf Links with views over the courses, ideal for Sunday roasts. Then grab an ice cream at the beach front Carnoustie Leisure Centre.

Next, it’s time to raise a glass.

For something different make it Angus Alchemy, a moonshine distillery that offers tours, tastings and shopping. Bring home bottles of Mistaken Identity ‘Banoffee Pie’ Moon5Hine, alongside Clootie, Cranachan, Monarch or Motor Moonshine (angusalchemy.com).

Craft beer connoisseurs should consider Shed 35 Brewery: beers include Patriot APA, Dark Angel oatmeal stout and Tomahawk IPA. Certain drinks showcase Angus’ soft fruit harvest, such as Shed Red raspberry wheat beer, and Shed Black raspberry and blackcurrant wheat beer (shed35brewery.co.uk).

Thankfully, there are plenty of sites in and around Carnoustie to walk off any indulgence. East Haven used to be a haven for fishing, today this picturesque village, just two miles up the coast, is a peaceful spot. While farmers are used to life with working dogs, East Haven beach commemorates the Airedale Terriers that served during WW1, having been trained on the local beaches of Barry Buddon, Carnoustie and East Haven. Tasks included finding

injured soldiers, transporting messages and first aid supplies, sentry work, and carrying carrier pigeons in crates on their backs.

The story dates back to doglovers Lt. Col. Edwin Hautenville Richardson and Blanche Bannon who bought a farm near Carnoustie and trained Airedale Terriers there.

As well as serving in WW1, Richardson and Bannon’s dogs became Scotland’s first police dogs, introduced to Glasgow in 1910 in response to violent house break-ins.

For another unexpected agricultural curiosity, unearth a local ‘Earth House’ such as Carlungie (ten minutes west of Carnoustie), accidentally discovered during ploughing in 1949. Earth houses, or ‘souterrains’, were stone-lined underground storage corridors.

Dating back to the Iron Age, it’s thought they may have been status symbols, perhaps storing agricultural surplus for the local community, even built to store grain for the Romans. At roughly forty metres long, Carlungie is one of the largest Earth Houses in Scotland. A second nearby Earth House is Ardestie, dating back roughly to the first two centuries AD (historicenvironment.scot).

Those seeking green spaces on their travels can pencil in attractions

Shed 35 Brewery

in and around Carnoustie. Slightly inland, chill out at Monikie Country Park. This fifty acre site includes a bird sanctuary and offers seasonal watersports such as windsurfing, canoeing, kayaking, sailing and paddleboarding. Wild swimmers can look out for ‘Dook and Chat’ sessions. Fans of historic walks can consider the Carnoustie Heritage Trail, it includes a small ornamental garden, which is all that remains of the local Salmon Bothy.

Originally ‘nets were stretched across the River Tay in Carnoustie Bay to catch salmon, which were prepared and packed in ice at the bothy by local women, and put on

special overnight express trains to Billingsgate Market in London’ (visitangus.com/get-inspired/ heritage-trails/carnoustie-heritagetrail). Crombie Country Park is another open green space for a breath of fresh air. Alternatively, discover a hidden gem tropical garden as part of Scotland’s Garden Scheme (visitangus.com/whatson/scotlands-gardens-schemecarnousties-tropical-garden).

Finally, tie a Carnoustie visit to an event. Carnoustie Gala Week falls 30 June-6 July 2025, and Carnoustie Farmers’ Market is undergoing a refresh so watch this space.

Sandy Sensation Playpark, Carnoustie courtesy of VisitAngus

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new

to market

Smarter Farming from the Sky Precision, insight, and efficiency — meet the drone built for modern agriculture and estate conservation Technology is soaring in agriculture - quite literally - and at the forefront is the DJI Matrice 4T Thermal Imaging Drone, now available from thermal imaging and night vision specialists Night Master. With easy controls and safety features, powerful thermal capability, low-light vision, and intelligent AI-driven data tools, the 4T is rapidly proving itself as an essential asset for farming and estate management.

The DJI Matrice 4T brings together four key sensors: a wideangle camera, a 16× optical zoom (112x hybrid zoom), a highresolution thermal sensor, and a laser rangefinder. This combination gives users an unprecedented level of insight across farmland, grazing blocks, and wild ground.

For the UK’s often unpredictable conditions, the 4T excels with providing clear thermal imaging, superb lowlight performance and a built-in infrared illuminator effective to 100 metres, enabling digital night vision without disturbing livestock or wildlife.

AI-Driven Insights for Smarter Land Use One of the standout features of the Matrice 4T is its teachable AI system - allowing the drone to identify, track and even count animals (as well as vehicles and people, making it a great tool for security).For estate managers, that might mean tracking deer herds for cull planning or conservation monitoring. For farmers, it means identifying areas of crop stress, weed infestation, or disease - all without stepping foot in the field.

Whether flying manually or on pre-programmed flight paths 106

(easily created on the controller screen), the drone can conduct regular scans and build a reliable data picture over time - saving hours of manual labour.

Proven Uses on Farm and Estate Deer & Wildlife Management Thermal and AI tools help estates monitor wildlife populations with precision. Ideal for cull planning, conservation, and habitat protection.

Crop Health Monitoring Detect crop stress, drought zones, pest activity or disease early with high-resolution imaging and thermal contrast - enabling faster, more accurate treatment decisions.

Weed Detection The AI can be trained to identify and map weed patches,

supporting precision spraying and reducing chemical usage and cost.

Livestock Patrols Spot lost, stuck or calving sheep and cattle in large fields, moorland or wooded areas - day or night - without the need for quad bikes or foot searches.

Land Mapping and Planning Measure field boundaries, check drainage, monitor erosion or plan fencing and rotational grazing with the laser rangefinder and onboard mapping tools.

Built for UK Conditiona Designed with rugged rural work in mind, the DJI Matrice 4T delivers: • Up to 45 minutes flight time • Omnidirectional obstacle

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avoidance sensors (for easier flying) • 16× optical and 112× digital zoom camera • Accurate distance measurement up to 1,800m • All-weather capable airframe and intelligent return-to-home features Backed by Night Master Supplied by Night Master, a trusted name in thermal imaging and night vision, the Matrice 4T comes with expert support and servicing.

Whether you’re running a sporting estate, organic farm, upland sheep system or arable rotation, Night Master can help you get the most from this cutting-edge technology.

For more information, visit www. nightmaster.co.uk or call 01535 611688

Alison Ross, WiAS Committee Member

A busy start to 2025 - Women in Agriculture Scotland attends the Women and Food Awards in Amsterdam plus many other events

By Alison Ross, WiAS Committee Member I’ve had a busy few engagements representing Women in Ag, February 22nd husband Brian and I attended the Farmers Choir at Thainstone and what a night it was, hosted by Jim Smith. The choir outshone any west end musical was conducted by choir director Kate Picken MBE. Seven hundred people attended and a total of £56,238 was raised for RSABI. Who said the Northeast folk don’t like to part with money!

The following week daughter Jenna and I attended the Women and Food Awards in Amsterdam, Jenna was runner up for the leader of the year award, huge congratulations to the winners.

We settled in at the Hotel Okura, the first session was later in the afternoon on a topic “a world without cows” having a few hours free we decided to go off to Dam Square and do some site seeing.

Always wanted to go back to Ann Franks having visited it 30 years ago to be told on arrival it was fully booked for the next twelve days.

Weather was mixed so we went for a hot chocolate, no we didn’t visit the coffee shops. Bikes, hundreds dumped along the canals, lots of shops with Dutch memorabilia and lovely cheeses.

Back at the hotel and attended a debate on “A world without cows”.

Interesting considering the cow is sacred in India, the African Massai don’t have a bank account instead they put their money towards buying a cow to nourish the family.

The true impact of cows in our world, the cultural and economic significance, their role in nourishing the world and their impact on climate is far from simple: when it comes to cows it’s not black and white. The evening concluded with wine nibbles and having chat with some interesting people and believe it or not the Irish and the Scots were the last to leave, we do like a party!

The post breakfast session the following day was presented by Kiki Buhrmann from Nestle Nespresso on “managing our energy not our time” I now know about my energy uppers and my energy downers and the importance of work life balance and try and avoid burn out, focus on the question am I happy what I’m doing? if not set new targets and goals.

Following on Margaret Slattery, Global head in diversity and inclusion gave a presentation

on women’s role in food and agriculture but then I thought what about people of colour, race, different genders and disability, not part of the discussion that day.

I was ready for lunch by then, looking through the afternoon agenda nothing really impressed me, so I thought about the work life balance and went to the leisure pool instead.

We attended the evening drinks reception, and this allowed Jenna to meet up with work colleagues.

The next morning up early and had a lovely drive to the airport. Back into Aberdeen to head on to the Royal Northern Agricultural Show at Thainstone to meet up with Mike Duxbury from Inclusive farm at MacRobert to do some canvassing for sponsorship for Inclusive farm and The Nuffield Conference which is to be held at the P & J Live Aberdeen in November 2025.

I feel it’s been nonstop, the Lantra ALBAS awards for land based and aquaculture skills at Crieff Hydro on the 6th of March was excellent. Jim Fairlie MSP for

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Agriculture and Connectivity gave a brief introduction followed by guest speaker Dr Jenna Ross OBE who presented the awards supported by Mike Duxbury. Congratulations to all the well-deserved winners.

Finally, I attended and represented Women in Ag at the Turcan Connell breakfast at Thainstone on the 13th of March, guest speakers Paul Macaulay, Elinor Kay and James Presley gave an update on the changes to IHT following the budget, the event was well attended by landowners, tenant farmers, land managers and estates.

Dates for your diary Teasses Estate, Leven tour and lunch. Date to be confirmed.

Ayrshire Event with a floral twist.

Date to be confirmed.

Royal Highland Show Breakfast Thursday the 19th of June 2025.

Keep your eyes peeled for dates being released and many more exciting events happening later in the year.

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Scottish Berry Pavlova

By Wendy Barrie Pavlova is undeniably retro and reassuringly delicious - a great way to showcase our Scottish summer berries. There is no limit to the fruits that can be celebrated: from early strawberries through raspberry season, blaeberries, sweetened gooseberry compote, mulberries through to late brambles or spiced poached plums. I’ve used Scottish rasps and our homegrown mulberries, wild strawberries, and blackcurrants, all frozen from last summer, along with a drizzle of our mulberry conserve. With gorse and rosemary in flower, and mint coming back to life, there is no shortage of embellishments from the kitchen garden. So whether you are supporting Scottish fruit growers or foraging from hedgerows, a pavlova is the perfect way to celebrate the seasons.

Ingredients: 3 egg whites 150g caster sugar Pinch of Isle of Skye Sea Salt

1 level dessertspoonful cornflour 1 tsp white wine vinegar ½ tsp vanilla essence

To decorate: 1 large carton double cream, whipped, with a selection of berries dotted with gorse and rosemary flowers, and sprigs of mint.

Method: • Draw around a side plate (about 15cm diameter) on a sheet of baking parchment to create a circle. Invert the paper – to prevent pen leaking onto pavlova – and place on a baking tray. Pre-heat oven 130℃.

• Whisk egg whites until stiff then gradually whisk in sugar.

• Add remaining ingredients, folding into the meringue mix.

• Spoon onto the lined baking tray and follow your guidelines to create a round pavlova. Hollow out a depression in the middle for placing the fruit when baked.

• Bake for 45 minutes until dry on outside then turn off oven and leave to continue drying for a further 30 minutes.

• Remove from oven and, only when thoroughly cold, fill the hollow generously with whipped cream and fruit.

Serves 6 Sponsored by

Wendy is a cook, food writer & campaigner for local sustainable produce & biodiversity. Founder Director of award-winning Scottish Food Guide, Scottish Cheese Trail & Scottish Farm Shops, Wendy is also Leader for Slow Food Ark of Taste & Cooks Alliance in Scotland, IGCAT Global Experts Network member, International Judge & co-founder of Scottish Bread Championship. She has co-written “Meadows: The Swedish Farmer & The Scottish Cook,” with her husband, on regenerative food production, available online & from selected farm shops.

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Photograph © Wendy Barrie

Beatha an eilean

Pròiseact a thug a’ choimhearsnachd croitearachd còmhla Le Murray MacLeòid

An Dr Stiubhairt Burgess, bho Institiud Rannsachaidh Moredun

Tha pròiseact anns an robh croitearan ann an Leòdhas is na Hearadh an sàs airson dèiligeadh leis a’ chlaimh air cliù nàiseanta fhaighinn.

An cois an Dr Stiubhairt Burgess, bho Institiud Rannsachaidh Moredun, chaidh airgead fhaighinn bho Riaghaltas na h-Alba agus tron sin chaidh làraidh a thoirt dhan an eilean airson dupadh a dhèanamh anns na bailtean, ‘s aig cosgais a bha gu math reusanta.

Thatar an dochas a-nis gun tig siostam a stèidheachadh a chiallaicheas, a’ dol air adhart, gum bi cliù aig an sgire airson caoraich is stoc a tha saor bhon ghalar.

‘S e biastag mi-chailear a tha anns a’ chlaimh a tha dèanamh uimhir a chron ann an caoraich agus ‘s e an aon doigh air smachd a chumail air ‘s ann tro bhith dupadh ann an doigh coordainaichte.

Tron phroiseact ann an Leodhas is na Hearadh, thàinig coimhearsnachd a’ chroitearachd còmhla airson dèanamh cinnteach gum biodh e soirbheachail.

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Bha daoine ann a bha cruinneachadh nan caorach dha daoine nach b’urrainn sin a dhèanamh dhaibh pèin, bha daoine eile ann le trèilearan a’ giulain na caoraich air ais ‘s air adhart mar a bha feum. Bha a h-uile duine ag obair comhla, dearbhadh gun robh spiorad a’ choimhearsnaich fhathast beò am measg chroitearan.

Bha cuid dhe na bodaich a fhuair tlachd mhòr à seo: bha e na chuimhneachadh dhaibh air na laithean nuair a bhiodh a’ bhaile a’ tighinn còmhla airson an seòrsa obair seo a dhèanamh.

Tha na comhraidhean a tha a’ dol air adhart a-nis mu dheidhinn ciamar is urrainn a dhèanamh maireanach - gun tig an dupadh a dhèanamh ann an dòigh coòrdanaichte gach bliadhna air feadh an eilein.

Làraidh an dupaidh aig faing ann an Leòdhas

Na bu thraithe sa bhliadhna chaidh am pròiseact a chur air adhart airson duais aig Duaisean Fiosrachaidh is Rannsachaidh na h-Alba a tha a’ comharrachadh sàr obair ann an saoghal acadaimigeach agus mar a bhios iad sin ag obair ann an co-bhionn le gnìomhachasan, roinn na soar thoiich, an roinn phoblachd is eile.

Chaidh am pròiseact ann an Leòdhas a chomharrachadh fon cuspair far an robh pròiseactan “a’ toirt buaidh air àite”.

Thug na britheamhan moladh dhan na daoine a bha an sàs ann son “smachd is dèiligeadh leis a’ chlaimh ann an dòigh a bha coimhearsnachdail”.

“Tha am pròiseact seo a’ sealltainn mar is urrainn, le oidhirp co-òrdanaichte agus le a bhith ag obair còmhla, làmh an uachdar fhaighinn air tinneasan, na

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caoraich a dhèanamh nas fhallaine agus spiorad a’ choimhearsnachd a dhaingneachadh.”

Chur Institiud Rannsachaidh Moredun fàilte air an naidheachd gun d’fhuair an Dt Stiubhairt Burgess agus na croitearan “sàr inbhe” aig na duaisean.

Thuirt an Dr Burgess gun robh e fìor math agus na urram ‘s gun robh e na “chomharra air an obair chruaidh a rinn a h-uile duine a bha an sàs ann - bho na companaidhean is na buidhnean gu na croitearan ann an Leòdhas is na Hearadh, a thàinig còmhla airson dèanamh cinnteach gum biodh an iomairt seo soirbheachail”.

“Cha b’ann direach mu dheidhinn a bhith dèiligeadh leis a’ chlaimh a bha am pròiseact seo; bha e mu dheidhinn ath-bheòthachadh a thoirt dhan choimhearsnachd, a’ daingneachadh ceangalan agus a’ sealltainn gun urrainn dha buannachd mòr a thighinn bho bhith ag obair comhla,” thuirt e. “Bha e dìreach sonraichte a bhith faicinn a’ choimhearsnachd croitearachd a’ tighinn comhla mar seo, fiù ‘s airson ùine bheag.”

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finance Farmland market holds firm despite political and financial pressures The farmland market in England and Wales is holding steady in the face of mounting sector pressures, according to the latest results from the Knight Frank Farmland Index. Despite wider challenges across the agricultural sector and ongoing policy uncertainty, values have remained largely stable, underlining the market’s resilience.

The index, which tracks the average price of bare agricultural land (arable and pasture) across England and Wales, shows a marginal drop of 1% in the first quarter of 2025 to £9,072/acre.

This follows a similar small decline in the final quarter of 2024, bringing the annual change to just -1.9%.

“While farmer protests and policy reform have dominated headlines, the farmland market itself has experienced a fairly uneventful start to the year,” says Will Matthews, Partner and Head of Farms and Estates at property consultancy, Knight Frank. “Values have remained steady, and relatively few new properties have been put up for sale so far in 2025.”

Just over 8,000 acres have been publicly launched during the first quarter – a drop of 11% compared with the same period last year.

While there has been speculation that the proposed reform of Inheritance Tax (IHT), due to come into effect in April 2026, could affect land values, Mr Matthews says the market has not yet responded with any significant increase in supply or signs of downward price pressure.

“Prospective buyers seem relatively sanguine about the reforms, and we completed a number of successful transactions in March,” he explains. “Farmland continues to trade at near-record prices, and while deals may have proceeded regardless, the arrival of spring sunshine has certainly lifted spirits and helped bring renewed momentum to the market.”

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“A large block of land in the Midlands, for example, sold for around £13,000/acre to a progressive farming business, with most other sales breaking the £10,000/acre barrier.”

Mr Matthews also points to more immediate concerns, including the big drops that farmers will see in their Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) cheques and uncertainty surrounding the future of the government’s environmental payment schemes.

“The current round of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), which would have helped to offset some BPS losses, was recently closed without notice, with many producers still to get their applications in. Again, however, it is too early to say if this will result in more landowners deciding to call it a day and put all or part of their holdings up for sale,” he says.

Even if more land does come to the market, Mr Matthews emphasises that demand remains strong. “Forward-looking farmers, in particular those with diversified income streams, investors and environmental buyers continue to drive interest. For now, the farmland market appears to be holding firm.”

Knight Frank’s Farms and Estates team is preparing to bring a strong pipeline of new properties to the market over the coming months, including commercial farmland, a large estate, vineyard opportunities and smaller lifestyle properties.

“Perhaps by the end of the year we’ll have more clarity regarding the impact of the government’s policy changes on land values,” concludes Mr Matthews. “But, so far, it seems to be business as usual for the sector of the market that we deal in.”

The Knight Frank Farmland Index has tracked the value of commercial agricultural land since 1944. www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com

finance AHDB commits to real change in farm assurance The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) has today published its detailed response to the Farm Assurance Review (FAR), confirming a strong commitment to change that ensures assurance is working effectively for everyone – both farmers and the wider supply chain.

AHDB is committed to working quickly on key recommendations. Most of the recommendations will require collaborative working and hence some time. Prioritisation is vital if real change on the most important issues is to be delivered quickly, rather than seeking to deliver immediate change on all the recommendations.

The key areas highlighted in the report that AHDB plans to prioritise are: • The role and purpose of assurance – Collaborating to ensure industry alignment on the role and purpose, including benefits, of particular schemes.

This is vital if there is to be ongoing support for assurance from farmers.

• Red Tractor ownership – AHDB agrees the owners of Red Tractor should show greater and more active leadership, to help shape its future direction and organisational culture. AHDB is committed to working with the fellow owners to ensure delivery.

• Data – AHDB is supportive of the general direction of this recommendation as data is a major area of opportunity for the industry. However, for it to work effectively and to “collect it once, use many times”, solutions must be found to the control/ownership of data, creating trust, not undermining the value of data, resolving governance standards and putting in place technical standards to make

things easy for farmers. None of these points are exclusive to assurance. AHDB is working on these topics and will invite assurance schemes to work to develop an effective scheme.

• Environmental standards – These are not going away, and it is important that levy payers are at the table to ensure the balance between regulation or contractual minimum versus incentivisation and reward for higher standards is fair and reasonable. AHDB will use its ongoing work on baselining and evidence to support the development and acceptance of wider standards (outside of farm assurance), with the clear objective that levy payers must have the potential to benefit from future standards.

Whether environmental standards should be included in farm assurance or not will depend on incentives for levy payers and the role and purpose of particular assurance schemes.

Commenting on the Farm Assurance Review, AHDB CEO Graham Wilkinson said: “AHDB is fully committed to seeing change in assurance that benefits everyone. My team and I are continuing to work with the unions, having jointly funded the original report, in supporting David Llewelyn, the lead independent commissioner who will report on progress in the future.

“In addition to the key cross sector areas, we will also focus on undertaking the work to compare and contrast the schemes and wider international standards for Cereals and Oilseeds. This work will help to inform the wider discussion between all parties in the supply chain about how assurance in this sector should work.

“The report is applicable to all assurance schemes, but it is clear that some of the

recommendations are focused specifically on Red Tractor.”

AHDB Chair Nicholas Saphir said: “As one of the six owners of Red Tractor, AHDB is committed to working to see genuine change that leads to the majority of members and stakeholders supporting the scheme. The AHDB board will review progress by Red Tractor in the autumn.

“We recognise that some may never support the concept of assurance, but the vast majority of all parts of the supply

chain will benefit from strong assurance schemes that have clear objectives, deliver value and work effectively.”

The FAR is a thorough and balanced report, which provides a critical and timely opportunity for collaboration and change. The nine strategic recommendations are the correct areas for assurance scheme owners and other stakeholders on which to focus.

Of the 56 recommendations, AHDB expects to be involved in 20, either directly or in collaboration with others.

FARMING SCOTLAND MAGAZINE Subscription page 113

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machinery

Alistair Young Engineering Joins Merlo Agricultural Dealer Network Merlo UK is pleased to announce that, effective Monday, 24th March 2025, Alistair Young Engineering Ltd, based in Dunphail, Forres, will join the Merlo dealer network.

The company will represent the brand north of the central belt in Scotland, covering Banff-shire, Moray, Nairn-shire, the west of Aberdeen-shire, Ross-shire, and Inverness-shire.

With a strong reputation for quality, service and expertise, Alistair Young Engineering Ltd is a family-owned business that aligns perfectly with Merlo’s own family values. As longstanding Valtra dealers since 1994, they also represent several leading agricultural franchises, including Hi-Spec Engineering, Krone, McHale, Richard Western, JPM Trailers, KRM, Bomford Turner, and Quicke.

Their deep-rooted experience in the agricultural sector ensures that Merlo customers in the

region will receive exceptional support, service, and expertise.

Shaun Groom, General Manager at Merlo UK, commented: “We are delighted to welcome Alistair Young Engineering Ltd back to the Merlo dealer network.

Their extensive experience, commitment to customer service, and strong presence in the region make them an excellent fit for representing Merlo. This partnership further strengthens our support for customers across northern Scotland.”

Ashleigh Young, Joint Managing Director of Alistair Young Engineering Ltd, added: “We are excited to introduce Merlo’s innovative telehandlers to our product offering. A high-quality telehandler for performance and reliability makes them the perfect addition to our existing franchises.

Neil Murdoch, Joint Managing Director of Alistair Young Engineering Ltd, added:

Our goal has always been to provide the best solutions for our customers, and this partnership allows us to expand our offering with a trusted, premium brand.

Founded in 1981 by Alistair Young Senior, the business has grown steadily over the years.

Now managed by three joint Managing Directors - Steven Young, Ashleigh Young, and Neil Murdoch – the company has expanded its staff facilities and customer base while maintaining its core focus on providing high quality service.

New safety option for Vari-Leader ploughs A new T traction bolt safety feature has been added to KUHN Farm Machinery’s range of large VariLeader ploughs, offering users a cost-effective option for load protection.

The option is aimed at growers farming light soils with low stone content, the simple T traction bolt has a share point load of 4,700kg and provides an alternative to the non-stop hydraulic system that is already available on the VariLeader range.

The innovative shearing design, as opposed to snapping, prevents broken bolts becoming stuck in the plough framework 116

as they break, allowing users to quickly and easily replace bolts and return to work. The bolt is fixed in the direction of travel, rather than at 90 degrees to it, therefore, when an obstacle is encountered, the bolt shears with the leg and avoids damage.

Edd Fanshawe, KUHN’s arable and connected services product specialist, says the addition of the T traction bolt will be appealing to users.

“With its high load rating and shearing design, the T traction bolt offers an established and cost-effective safety option. The design is well proven across other

KUHN ploughs and reduces the oval effect that traditional shear bolts create on the hole through constant movement.

This improves component longevity and makes replacing T traction

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bolts much easier on the VariLeader models.”

The semi mounted Vari-Leader range is available in 6-8 bodies and suited to tractors from 135hp up to 360hp.

machinery

A new range from Landquip plugs the gap Suffolk’s sprayer manufacturer Landquip, known for its large wide-boomed sprayers, is to introduce a new range of mounted machines for the 2025 season, with booms from 12 to 15 metres and tank capacities up to 1200 litres.

Having been asked by farmers and dealers alike, the company began considering the design, specification, and the needs of small to medium arable and vegetable growers requiring a quality build and a high specification sprayer with robustly constructed booms.

The XRF range of hydraulic cross rear fold booms from 12 to 15 metres slots in between Landquip’s amenity sprayers with their 6 to 10 metre booms and the arable mounted machine range with aluminium booms from 18 to 30 metres.

Ideally suited to tractors of 80-150 hp, the XRF machines are compact closecoupled offering good weight distribution with tank shapes that result in a low centre of gravity. A 1000 litre, 12 metre XRF 1012 weighs 850 kg.

The high grade polyethylene tanks available in 800, 1000 or 1200 litres have ultra smooth, easy clean inner and outer surfaces with efficient sump for exceptional draining to use every last drop, aiding washing out and minimising water use.

Constructed of the same polyethylene material, the 65 litre system washtank, 20 litre hand wash, and 30 litre swingout low level chemical induction bowl complete with can wash, hopper wash, and agitation jet, all come fitted as standard equipment.

JCB adds ultra-compact tm110 to Telemaster loader range With the order book open and production getting under way, JCB’s latest – and smallest –telescopic wheeled loader reinforces JCB Agriculture’s goal of meeting the materials handling needs of all farming, horticultural and other rural businesses.

Despite being the smallest model in the line-up, the all-new TM110 packs a performance punch that makes it a highly practical tool for use in livestock production and commercial horticulture, either as the sole handling machine or working alongside a larger handler.

It also provides an option for farmers with a small fixed arm 118

loader to upgrade to a machine with more lift capacity, reach and load-placement versatility.

By combining ultra-compact dimensions – less than 1.6 metres wide and 2.2 metres tall – with a generous payload of 1.1 tonnes and 3.5metre lift height, the TM110 can work its way into buildings with the tightest access, yet still lift and stack big square bales and bulk containers.

JCB Agriculture Managing Director John Smith, said: “In recent years, we have focused on developing larger, more powerful and more capable telescopic wheeled loaders, such as the latest TM320S, the TM420 and TM420S with unique features www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com

machinery such as the eight-speed 40kph or 50kph powershift transmission.

“With the TM110 we are addressing the ultra-compact sector for the first time, with a machine that complements the compact TM180 and TM220 and has big loader features packed into the tightest dimensions to create a really well-equipped and practical materials handling solution.”

Powered by a 50hp diesel engine, the new TM110 has been designed for operators wanting the familiar central high-set driving position of a pivot steer telescopic wheeled loader for allround visibility when working in and around buildings.

It can get into the smallest livestock sheds while still being capable of productive chores around the yard thanks to a safeworking load capacity of 1.1 tonnes that means the TM110 can comfortably handle the biggest square bales.

It can stack them too, despite the low-set boom mounting giving good forwards visibility, thanks to the 3.5 metre lift height when the boom is extended.

Handling bulk bags and containers typically holding a tonne of seed, fertiliser, AdBlue, silage preservative and so on, are all within the new machine’s capabilities.

FARMING SCOTLAND MAGAZINE Next issue out July 2025 Subscription Page 113

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machinery

New HORSCH Kredo HD takes the power harrow to new heights The new HORSCH Kredo HD is the next generation of power harrow, optimised with well-proven technology to take performance to new heights in the sector.

Thanks to a solid design, a 3m Kredo HD can be operated by tractors of up to 300hp, made possible by an 8mm thick hollow profile trough. This hollow profile design reduces the sealing surface to a minimum and the rotor sets are screwed from below. The tine carrier, rotor kit and the shaft, that is supported by two taper 60mm and 70mm roller bearings, can be dismantled from below. The power harrow is greased through an opening.

The Kredo HD is part of the standard specification of the Express KR, Versa KR, Versa SW and Versa SL drills. It is also available without a seed unit to be used for tillage, making the power harrow Kredo ideal for seedbed preparation.

It is available in 3m, 3.5m, and 4m working widths as rigid models and 4m and 6m folding models. The rotors (10 on the 3m version) ensure maximum clearance even in stony soils and the power harrow has been designed for maximum stability in difficult conditions.

The Kredo HD features the proven quick-change drag or grip HORSCH tines and carbide

coating is available. This reliable coating technology from the cultivator tine sector ensures a constant working depth in addition to a long service life.

By adapting the operational speed and the rotational speed of the power harrow, the cultivation intensity in the seedbed can be controlled in a targeted way

The precise adjustment of the working depth of the Kredo HD power harrow is easily accessible from the outside. A lasered hole and position pattern ensures the depth is easily monitored. The levelling bar can also be adjusted easily with the universal tool, and in the future will be fitted on the packer roller.

Kverneland extends area with J&S Montgomery Kverneland Group UK is pleased to announce that existing familyrun dealership J&S Montgomery, which covers the west coast of Scotland, has expanded its trading area through the purchase of DKR Agricultural Services based at Coulter, near Biggar.

Douglas Montgomery, dealer principal at J&S Montgomery said: “We’re delighted to have expanded into Lanarkshire and are currently working with DKR and its staff to ensure it’s business as usual for all customers and staff, as the 120

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Coulter site is integrated into the J&S Montgomery portfolio, to operate alongside our existing premises at Beith, Stranraer and Ayr.” DKR Agricultural Services – a business run by David Doig, his sister Susan, and brother Keith - has been trading since 1989 and predominantly serves livestock and dairy farms, in addition to contractors and a significant number of arablefocused operations.

“We’re looking forward to welcoming customers old and

machinery new through the doors at our newly integrated depot based at Coulter, as we increase our trading area for the Kverneland product range,” said Douglas.

“We’ll also be holding a launch event at Lanark market on April 17 to introduce our brands to the wider farming community.”

Dan Crowe, Kverneland managing director, said: “We are pleased to support further development of the J&S Montgomery business, which

adds clarity to the distribution of the Kverneland portfolio in this area. As a result, R&R Machinery – formerly Ross of Lanark – will no longer be part of the Kverneland dealer network.”

The Kverneland portfolio includes an extensive range of soil preparation, seeding and mechanical weeding equipment, plus grass and forage products, feeding and bedding equipment, fertiliser spreaders, sprayers and precision farming technology.

Bobcat has completed the company’s agricultural telehandler range with three new machines. The new large high flow models - the TL34.65HF

V-Drive, TL38.70HF V-Drive and TL43.80HF V-Drive - all utilise the ‘V-Drive’ continuous transmission system. They are designed to offer more

Bobcat Launches New ‘V-Drive’ Telehandlers for Agriculture comfort and productivity while improving operators’ peace of mind and reducing the total cost of ownership (TCO) of equipment during its lifecycle.

Florian Hilbert, Product Manager for Telehandlers, Bobcat EMEA, said: “With the V-Drive models added to the existing range, Bobcat

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machinery still offers the current gearbox transmission for the high flow models, so customers can choose between the existing gearbox system or the new V-Drive continuous transmission. The innovative and smart functions on the new V-Drive models provide an excellent solution for customers requiring a highperformance alternative for their applications.”

Using dual hydraulic motors in series, Bobcat has been able to maintain the same performance as the current gearbox transmission. Contrary to the current transmission, the V-Drive

transmission allows the operator to drive from 0 to 40 km/h without the need to stop the machine or think about changing the gear before starting. As a result, the simplicity and efficiency of the V-Drive transmission offers the highest comfort and peace-of-mind for the operator. It also removes any jolts that might happen when moving from one speed range to another.

The hydraulic tank has also been redesigned resulting in a higher capacity (70 l instead of 59 l in the current transmission).

In the new V-Drive models, the Turtle and Rabbit hydrostatic speed ranges are still available

and are always selectable through the joystick. Both hydraulic speed ranges have been

optimized with specific curves according to the requirements of the application.

Vervaet Hydro Trike celebrates 35 years and new cab for Vervaet Quad 550 This year the extraordinarily successful Vervaet Hydro Trike self-propelled slurry applicator celebrates its 35th anniversary.

To mark the occasion, new machines supplied during 2025 feature special commemorative decals as well as an updated livery.

The Hydro Trike was initially developed on the continent in response to sudden demand following Dutch government legislation which made it mandatory to inject slurry.

Extensive prototype testing during 1990 was followed by production in 1991.

The Hydro Trike concept matched high-output with low ground pressure, using three flotation tyres to spread its weight evenly and provide a tight turning circle. It quickly became popular, and has now been the continental market-leader for well over two decades with well over 1000 made in total.

The Hydro Trike has been constantly updated since its introduction, and today’s range includes three-wheel and five-wheel models with tank 122

capacities of 16m3 and 20m3 respectively.

Solid manure spreading bodies can also be fitted.

Parts are held in stock for all machines going right back to the beginning, meaning older machines can still be backed-up.

This is demonstrated by multiple older Hydro Trikes, each with nearly 30,000 hours on the clock, still in operation on the continent.

Although arguably too advanced for the UK market when first developed, more recently sales have increased dramatically over here, and there is now a steadily growing healthy population. With UK importer J

Riley Beet Harvesters (UK) Ltd able to draw on a large pool of quality used machines, as well

as factory-overhauled examples, there is something available to suit all workloads and budgets.

Kubota expands dealership areas Kubota (UK) Ltd has implemented a series of changes to three of its dealer sales areas following recent appointments that have

taken place within the dealer network covering Warwickshire, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire.

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The first involves south Wales-based Hopkins Machinery, which gains access to Kubota groundcare and M-series

machinery tractor ranges through its Kilcot depot located near Newent, Gloucestershire, creating opportunities for the family-run dealership around Ross-on-Wye, Gloucester and the western side of Cheltenham.

“We’re extremely pleased to be able to provide sales, service and support for all the existing Kubota products we handle, but now through our Kilcot depot in addition to our St Brides Wentloog, South Wales headquarters, and our Brecon, Powys locations,” said Evan Hopkins, a director of the company.

The second change sees Pallisers of Hereford gain area to the east of its former territory, taking in Upton-uponSevern and the western side of Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, while also extending north and east toward Pershore, Hanbury and Bromsgrove, in Worcestershire.

“We’re pleased to be expanding our Kubota tractor business within these additional areas,” said Camilla Palliser, dealer principal at Pallisers of Hereford. “We’re looking forward to supporting new Pallisers customers throughout these areas.”

The third dealer to benefit is Lister Wilder, which gains additional area in the north of its territory, extending eastwards from Cheltenham to encompass Northleach and Hazleton, and stretching north into the Cotswolds towards Bourtonon-the-Water, Gloucestershire, adjoining the area recently taken over by Hunts Engineering at Halford, Warwickshire.

“Any extension to our sales area is always going to be a positive step forward for Lister Wilder and the Kubota

brand,” says Lister Wilder sales director Phill Hughes. “It’s an opportunity to work with and support many new customers.”

FARMING SCOTLAND MAGAZINE Next issue out July 2025

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machinery

Quicke launches the new Unigrip L+ / XL+

Quicke is proud to introduce the new Unigrip L+ and XL+, the nextgeneration bale grabs designed for farmers and contractors who need strength, efficiency, and soft handling in their daily tasks. The Unigrip L+ and XL+ is built to handle the toughest farm work while also preserving the quality of your bales and saving time.

“We set out to create a bale grab that gives you both robustness and efficiency,” said Henrik Jönsson, Product Manager Implements at Quicke.

“From reinforced stress points to an adjustable back bale support, every detail has been designed to help farmers get more work done in less time, without compromising on bale quality.”

Thanks to its adjustable back support and the option for a second bale back stop, the

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Unigrip L+ and XL+ let you grab and transport two bales at once — doubling your productivity in the field. Whether you are handling silage, hay, or straw,

the L+ version can handle bales from 120 to 160 cm, and the XL+ version goes up to 190 cm. This versatility makes them the perfect tool for any farming operation.

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One of the key features of the Unigrip L+ is its ability to handle bales softly while securely holding them in place. This means you can transport bales without damaging or compressing them, keeping your silage, hay, and straw in perfect condition.

“We are excited to offer a bale grab that helps you work smarter, not harder,” added Yenny Fredriksson, Managing Director of Quicke. “The Unigrip L+ and XL+ are designed to give farmers a reliable solution that improves productivity while protecting the quality of their crops.”

With the optional equalizer bar, you get synchronized arm movement which gives the same features as a two-cylinder bale grab. Unigrip L+ and XL+ comes as standard with a pressure restrictor valve to protect the silage from compression and to prevent structural damages to the basic design.

Additionally, a load-hold valve for handlers with free return to tank on third service is offered to ensure a secure grip.

The Unigrip L+ and XL+ are compatible with most agricultural loaders and handlers, thanks to the BoH system 80x80, making it a perfect fit for both today’s needs and future farming technologies.

machinery

Conagri has teamed up with Captain Tractors to launch compact tractors in the UK Agricultural and construction equipment dealer group Conagri has partnered with Captain Tractors, global pioneers of the compact tractor, to officially launch the brand in the UK. The Devon-based group is now the sole UK distributor of the high-end compact tractors and attachments for a wide range of agricultural uses, including land preparation, sowing and crop care, harvesting and ancillary work.

As such, Conagri already has Terry Harrison Machinery in South Wales and AMIA in the South West

as the first two dealers and is also actively looking to recruit others in East and West Scotland, Cumbria, the North West and North East, North Wales, West Midlands, East Midlands, The Midlands, South East and South (Surrey, Sussex, Hampshire).

To this end, Conagri will be showcasing the Captain Tractors brand at more than a dozen county, agricultural and local shows throughout the UK, including Royal Highland, Royal Welsh, Devon County, Royal Bath and West, and Royal Cornwall.

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machinery The Captain Tractors brand, whose aerospace division is authorised by the CAA to rebuild aircraft and aero engines, comprises five series ranging from 15 to 28 HP and weighing between 780kg and 945kg to minimise fuel consumption. Common features include a first gear which is intentionally slow at 1.43 km/h to enable unparalleled soil processing.

Conagri is selling the 25HP 263 (manual and automatic) from

its site in Crediton and 13 have already sold.

Conagri business development manager Andrew Venton said: “Captain Tractors invented the high-end compact tractor as we know it so when we were offered the opportunity to be the brand’s sole UK distributor we jumped at it.

“The management expertise and pedigree of Captain Tractors meant there was nothing more to consider other than how many

BOSS ORV has announced the addition of two more Corvus Off-Road Vehicle dealers to their growing UK dealer network.

Guy Machinery Ltd. of Gisburne, Lancashire and Used4Turf based in Colchester, Essex, have become part of the Corvus team.

The Corvus Terrain DX4 diesel off-road utility vehicle was the first of its type manufactured in Europe, and the brand has grown from strength to strength with the addition of the EX4 all-electric version. The Terrain has found popularity in the agricultural, groundscare, amenity and estate sectors.

Guy Machinery was established at Skipton Auction Mart in 2005, taking over the former Gibsons. They moved to their Gisburne site in 2013 to bring their team together under one roof to improve customer service and communications.

They specialise in sales of new and used trailers, agricultural vehicles and machinery, ATVs and quad bikes, loaders and handlers. As Corvus dealers, they add side-by-side diesel and electric utility vehicles to their line-up.

Used4Turf has over thirty years of experience supplying equipment to turf growers, landscapers, local authorities,

golf courses, sports clubs, private estate owners and more.

Founded by Neil Peachey, Used4Turf supplies new and used equipment and Neil says they make it their business to gain a comprehensive understanding of customers’ requirements, budgets and long-term plans. He adds they pride themselves on exceptional personal customer service and that they are proud to call clients their friends.

BOSS Off-Road Vehicles is the sole UK Corvus UTV distributor and National Sales Manager Neil Everett says they are delighted to welcome both dealers as part of the team that sells and supports the brand.

shall we order. Conagri are early adaptors, who like Captain, prefer to lead and have others follow, so we were made for each other!”

Terry Harrison Machinery have already sold two of the nine Captain Tractors 223 and 263 machines they had in stock in Pembrokeshire - one to a small private contractor and one to the owners of a smallholding. Some of the remaining ones are fitted with Captain Tractors’ loaders.

It is not the first time they have been a dealer for an Indian brand but Captain Tractors conveniently replaced the predecessor when the supply chain dried up.

Owner Terry Harrison said: “I knew quite a bit about Captain Tractors before we were offered the opportunity to become a dealer. They are good quality machines and their price is obviously very attractive. It is early season yet but the signs so far are very good.”

Conagri has teamed up with Captain Tractors to launch compact tractors in the UK

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Major Cyclone Gets Nod of Approval From Agricultural Engineer James Stewart of Stewart Trailers purchased the 2.8m Major Cyclone to control bracken and willow for his sheep farm on the rolling hills of Aberdeenshire in

north-east Scotland.

James Stewart, known for his high-quality agricultural trailers, also runs an sheep farm in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The

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farm faces a significant challenge with bracken and willow, which reduce grazing potential and make the land unproductive.

Initially, James used a simple

machinery topper to control the vegetation, but it was ineffective, as the plants quickly regenerated.

His local dealer, Sellars Agriculture, recommended the Major Cyclone rotary mulcher, which was already successfully tackling bracken for other farmers in the area. Impressed with its performance while on demo, James purchased a 2.8m Major Cyclone. The mulcher requires just 80-120hp and is equipped with four rotors and 16 knives. This allows it to cut and mulch vegetation, evenly dispersing it over full-length rollers. The cutting height can be adjusted between 40mm and 200mm.Built from Strenx™ 700MC structural steel, the Major Cyclone is stronger and lighter than traditional toppers and its hot-dip galvanisation protects it from rust and damage.

James was impressed with the machines robust frame, heavyduty gearbox and long-term durability “There’s no substitute

for quality engineering,” explained James, “and I have to say that the Major Cyclone is truly a fine piece of quality engineering.

The Major Cyclone effectively processes bracken and willow, even with heavy clumps or 3-inch willow stems, in just one pass. Unlike standard toppers, it doesn’t leave clumps behind but finely shreds and spreads the material, leaving a clean finish. “The way the Cyclone chops everything completely, shreds it and spreads it around is unbelievable,” said James. “I was a bit concerned about its ability to chop oneinch willow stems, but I didn’t need to have worried because it takes it on without flinching.”

James is now considering using it for heather control instead of burning.

James lauds the Cyclone’s performance in difficult conditions. “I would recommend the Major Cyclone to anyone

who needs to control heavy vegetation on pastureland,” continued James. “For hill farms especially where the bracken invasion is having a detrimental effect on the grazing performance of the land. Also, land with heavy excess vegetation and infestation which makes it almost impossible to round-up the sheep safely. For me, the

Cyclone, has changed everything and made hill management much simpler. The Cyclone is without doubt ‘the’ solution to bracken and willow control and for me it has performed way beyond my expectations!”

To book a demo, visit www. major-equipment.com or call Major Equipment on 01524 850501.

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events

National Organic Conference 2025 seeks to inspire the regen-curious

The upcoming National Organic Conference (NOC) 2025 will highlight the role of organic and regenerative practices in building more resilient and secure farming and food systems.

The flagship OF&G event takes place on Wednesday 11 June, this year hosted in the scenic Yorkshire Wolds and bringing together two experienced, pioneering organic farming families to share their insights and practices with attendees.

The day begins at Carr House Farm, managed by the Sellers family for over five generations.

As stewards of a designated Site of Specific Scientific Interest (SSSI), they have embraced 128

organic farming within their 192-hectare estate to enhance biodiversity and sustain their traditional milling and food production enterprise.

The Side Oven Bakery, established by Caroline Sellers, showcases the farm’s commitment to provenance and delivering better food security with its range of locally produced goods, where food miles are measured in metres.

The conference then moves to High Callis Farm, where Mike and Kate Stringer, thirdgeneration tenant farmers, manage a diverse organic and partially conventional farming operation.

Their dedication to organic principles, which started following conversion in 1999, has turned their farm into a successful business model for environmental and agricultural cooperation.

OF&G interim chief executive, Steve Clarkson, emphasises the importance of such models for the future of farming; “Both the Sellers and Stringer families exemplify how integrating organic and regenerative practices can create robust farming systems that contribute significantly to our national food security.

“This conference is not only a showcase of their remarkable

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efforts but also an educational platform for all farmers interested in sustainable and resilient agricultural methods.”

The conference aims to foster a collaborative environment where conventional, regenerative and organic farmers can explore common ground. Attendees will gain firsthand experience of how a farmer moves towards these practices to deliver economic and ecological resilience for future generations.

For more information about the programme and to register interest in booking your place, visit https:// nationalorganicconference2025. eventbrite.co.uk

events Speakers Announced for RBST Scotland Native Breeds Conference 2025 The Rare Breeds Survival Trust (RBST) is pleased to announce Lynn Cassells, Jane Cooper and Jan McCourt as keynote speakers for the RBST Scotland Native Breeds Conference. The conference will take place on Thursday 31st July 2025 at Guardswell Farm, Inchture (Perthshire).

The full-day conference will explore the theme of ‘Native Breeds: Their Role in Scotland’s Agricultural Future’. It will bring together farmers, smallholders and retailers with politicians and conservationists to discuss rare and native breeds as the heart of sustainable and regenerative farming in Scotland, and the opportunities and challenges associated with accessing the full environment, economic and community benefits these breeds

can deliver. Find the programme and ticketing information at https:// rbstscotland.org/.

The keynote speakers announced today are: Lynn Cassells - co-owner of Lynbreck Croft, a regenerative Highlands farm with livestock including Highland cattle and native breed pigs. Lynn is a conservation expert who also leads on sales, marketing and financial planning for the croft.

Jane Cooper - Owner of the ‘Lost Flock’ of rare Boreray sheep in the Orkney Islands, Jane is taking a new, community-centred approach with this ancient native breed.

Jan McCourt - RBST Trustee and native breed produce specialist, Jan was instrumental in the relaunch of London’s Borough

Market. He farms with native livestock and runs an established farm shop on the Rutland/ Leicestershire border.

RBST is the national charity working to conserve and promote the UK’s native breeds of livestock and equines. RBST Scotland Coordinator Alice Lennox says: “We are thrilled to announce these fantastic keynote speakers for the RBST Scotland Native Breeds Conference in July 2025. We are in a time of great opportunity for people involved with native breed farming and produce, they are the ideal breeds for agriculture where sustainable food production goes hand in hand with supporting the natural environment, biodiversity and resilience.

The conference will also feature a live traditional

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butchery demonstration from Butchery Manager, Euan Simpson, Balcaskie Estate, using a Tamworth pig carcass, a culinary breakfast and lunch menu featuring Shetland beef and Hebridean hogget sourced directly from Guardswell Farm.

Expert panel sessions will examine rare native livestock’s role in sustainable farming, the opportunities and advantages native breeds provide, market opportunities and consumer demand, and these breeds’ role in policies for agriculture and climate goals.

The RBST Scotland Conference 2025 is sponsored by The Soil Association.

Tickets can be purchased by RBST members and non-members at https://rbstscotland.org.

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PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

Alex Paterson Scotland’s leading agricultural organisation, RHASS (Royal Highland & Agricultural Society of Scotland), has announced Alex Paterson as its new Chief Executive.

Taking up the post in May, Alex will play a pivotal role in shaping the organisation’s strategic direction, delivering growth and ensuring strong financial stability and governance.

Alex brings a wealth of experience to RHASS. Previously Chief Executive of Historic Environment Scotland (HES) from 2016 to 2024, Alex successfully built HES into a high-performing organisation, ensuring effective governance and forming strategic relationships across the public sector Steve Clarkson OF&G (Organic Farmers & Growers) is pleased to announce the appointment of Steve Clarkson as interim chief executive. This follows the OF&G Board’s mutual decision with Bill Young to part ways after his initial probationary period in the role concluded.

Steve Clarkson has been a key figure within OF&G since 2002 and has held the position of certification and compliance manager since 2009.

He brings a wealth of experience and knowledge of the organic sector as well as a robust understanding of OF&G’s strategic objectives and is committed to ensuring a seamless transition.

Bill Gray MBE CARAS the body honouring distinguished service to Scottish agriculture and related sectors has a new Chair. Well respected Midlothian farm and estate manager Bill Gray MBE was appointed at their recent Conference and AGM held at the Royal Highland centre, Ingliston. He succeeds Stranraer farmer Robert Parker.

The men and woman who are Associates and Fellows of the Royal Agricultural Societies are nominated and selected for their outstanding contribution to UK agriculture and rural prosperity. Members include engineers, researchers and communicators as well as those more directly involved in all aspects of land management.

Sian Pritchard KUHN Farm Machinery’s managing director, Siân Pritchard, will become the Agricultural Engineers Association’s (AEA) newly elected president on 1 April 2025. She has outlined her commitment to encouraging new people into the industry and engaging with social media to support the AEA’s campaign, ‘We are Land Based Engineering’.

Siân is from a farm machinery background and her family farms on the Welsh border, and, following various machinery manufacturing roles on the continent, she became managing director of KUHN Farm Machinery, based in Telford, Shropshire, in 2009.

Stuart Henry Merlo UK is delighted to announce the return of Stuart Henry as Area Service Manager, covering the Northern England territory. With extensive experience in agricultural and heavy vehicle engineering, Stuart brings a deep understanding of service and aftersales support to the role.

Stuart originally joined Merlo in December 2014. His career began with a strong foundation in farming, leading him to an apprenticeship in agricultural engineering with Oliver and Snowdon, now Carrs Billington.

From there, he transitioned to HGV mechanics, obtained his HGV license, worked as a lorry driver before returning to agriculture- his true passion. He later advanced into the role of Area Manager for SDF before initially joining Merlo.

THE BOOK SHELF Edinburgh: The Autobiography

by Alan Taylor

Just this past year, Edinburgh marked its 900th year as an official city, and Alan Taylor’s comprehensive collection of writings about Scotland’s capital, Edinburgh: The Autobiography, was published as a part of this monumental anniversary celebration. Known for his previous work on the diaries of Alan Rickman, memoir on his friendship with Muriel Spark and, most relevantly, Glasgow: The Autobiography, this was an exciting venture for the author and journalist to undertake – the significant task of selecting and editing together many written pieces about Edinburgh into one cohesive volume.

Edinburgh: The Autobiography includes writings dating from all the way back to the 600’s up to the present day, with key historical voices like David Hume, Sir Walter Scott and Dorothy Wordsworth represented alongside recognisable modern authors such as Ian Rankin and Kathleen Jamie.

What emerges is an intriguing portrait of the city, told from many different perspectives over time.

This collection is diversely made up of snippets from memoirs, travelogues, newspaper clippings, journals, poems, magazines, court records and other official documents. Some passages are entirely anonymous, while others come from famous writers and thinkers. This gives the anthology a simultaneously authentic

and familiar feel, while also showcasing the breadth of research Alan has undertaken as well as the richness of Edinburgh’s past.

In this anthology, Alan Taylor’s own voice and knowledge shine through, as he guides the reader from passage to passage, offering important context and background information where needed. He also introduces the book brilliantly in the opening pages, quoting Hugh MacDiarmid’s eminent description of Edinburgh as ‘a mad god’s dream.’ Here, Alan infuses some of his own personal experiences of the city, telling a fascinating story of a time he met with iconic poet Norman MacCaig in the Abbotsford Bar. Alan weaves in and out of exploring the sweeping history of the city as he shares this compelling anecdote, which is a perfect introduction to what he will do throughout the anthology as it progresses through time.

Edinburgh: The Autobiography is essential reading for anyone with a keen interest in and love for Scotland’s capital. It explores important issues which have affected the city throughout its history, such as class division, resistance to change, architectural development, tourism, as well as the robust literary and cultural traditions it has inspired. Known aptly as ‘The Festival City’ or ‘The Athens of the North,’ Edinburgh is truly a one-of-a-kind place depicted beautifully in this wideranging new book.

Edinburgh: The Autobiography by Alan Taylor was published by Birlinn in October 2024 (£20) www.birlinn.co.uk www.farmingscotlandmagazine.com