Talking, Travel & Tractors

Enthusiastic young dairy farmer, Andrew Taylor, who farms in Robert Burns Country, near Mauchline, is certainly making his mark on farm and in the Young Farmers. He has introduced a crossbreeding programme on the family farm and holds his own speech making and debating at National and International YFC level

Andrew had just returned from a Young Farmer Speech Making trip to Canada when I caught up with him on Lochhill Farm, which lies a mile from Mauchline and a mile from Kilmarnock

“Since joining young farmers at 15 I have taken part in many competitions Speech making has to be my favourite It has been the most beneficial as it has given me the confidence to convey and debate a subject in front of an audience.”

Andrew along with three other Crossroads Young Farmer members had won the Senior Speech Making at

National level in Scotland and headed across the Atlantic in November to compete in the Canadian Young Speakers in Agriculture event at the Toronto Winter Fair.

“Unfortunately David Smith of Deacon Hill dairy farm and I were too old to compete, but Fiona Cuthbertson, who is a primary teacher and Scott Anderson, who works for Carrs out of Ayr flew the flag for Scotland ”

Scott went on to win the individual title The four farmers toured round Toronto and visited Niagara Falls, before flying to Calgary, hiring a 27-foot RV and heading for the Rockies Stops included Banff National Park, Crazy Creek, Kamloops and Whistler Three dairy farm visits in the Fraser Valley followed

“Rosedale Holsteins was first, with 300 cows and six robots, averaging 14 500l. It is a family farm run by a brother and sister. They were securing five cuts of silage and maize A very tidy farm, using a leaf blower to blow feed passages! The second property was run by Dutch who moved in the 90’s. They were attaining 37litres at 4.7% fat, by feeding a lot of fat supplements And the last was Gracemarr, a 1000 acre farm, milking 1200 cows on a GEA 50-bail robotic platform They were averaging 40kgs at 4 2% fat The units were flood washed and very labour efficient I enjoyed our time out there and we saw a diverse range of farming systems,” shared Andrew, who spent a couple of years as an SRUC Consultant at Ayr following his graduation

Back on home turf the Taylor family have been tenant farmers on Hill Farm since 1848 and neighbouring Lochhill Farm from 1911 “My Great grandfather had been a cattle dealer and farmer at Hill Farm and Lochhill had lain empty for a number of years so was pretty run down when he took it on. ”