Crofts and Small Farms
Home Wintering Cattle vs Wintering Away
Each year livestock keepers face an important management decision: is it more cost effective to winter cattle at home or send them away? While the wintering away charge provides an obvious figure to compare, the true cost of wintering cattle at home can be less straightforward. The best option will depend on the individual business,…
Crofting Matters – Big Projects, Local Communities – Navigating Development Proposals
Hello and welcome to Crofting Matters, hosted by Osla Jamwal Fraser where we discuss topics that matter in crofting. Today we’re speaking with Chartered Surveyor and Senior Agricultural Consultant with SAC Consulting, Fergus Russell. Wherever you may be in the Crofting Counties there are lots of new and different types of land-based development going on…
Crofting Matters – Northmavine: from Tradition to Tomorrow
Hello and welcome to Crofting Matters, hosted by Osla Jamwal Fraser where we discuss topics that matter in crofting. For this series, we are bringing you Crofting Matters from Shetland. Today we are looking at traditional crofting practices, Shetland Kale, and how a local development group is working to protect and develop rural life in…
Getting Ready for Muirburn Licensing
In 2026, muirburn legislation changed in 3 important ways: Everyone will need a licence to undertake muirburn. To obtain a licence everyone taking part in muirburn will need to undertake online and practical training. The muirburn season dates have changed to 15th September – 31st March. The basis on which muirburn is permitted has changed. The graphic below shows the 5 purposes that it…
Crofting Matters – Shetland, From Land to the Sea
Hello and welcome to Crofting Matters, hosted by Osla Jamwal Fraser where we discuss topics that matter in crofting. Over the next few episodes, we will be bringing you Crofting Matters from Shetland. Today we are joined by David Brown, Crofter, Shetlander, and Area Manager for Cooke Aquaculture Scotland. In this episode we look at…
Crofting Matters – Shetland Black Aets: Preserving an Ancient Land Race, and Heritage Straw Crafts
Hello and welcome to Crofting Matters, hosted by Osla Jamwal Fraser where we discuss topics that matter in crofting. Over the next few episodes, we will be bringing you Crofting Matters from Shetland. Today we are joined by two fascinating guests! Eve Eunson who was born and raised on her family’s Croft in Fair Isle…
Crofting Matters – Crofting Through the Seasons : Autumn & Winter
In this special two-part edition of Crofting Matters, “Crofting Through the Seasons”, we take you back to Autumn & Winter last year, where Kieron Sim visited both the Isle of Skye and the Shetland Isles, to speak with four local crofters about their enterprises, the challenges and benefits of Island Living, and how Seasonality uniquely…
Crofting Matters – Crofting Through the Seasons: Spring & Summer
In this special two-part edition of Crofting Matters, “Crofting Through the Seasons”, we take you back to Spring/Summer last year, where Ross Mackenzie visited the Staffin Sheepdog Trials, a hugely popular event in Trotternish, on the Isle of Skye. Sheepdog trials are deeply rooted in crofting culture, normally held during the summer months, these trials…
Rural Roundup – Spotlight: Crofting Through The Seasons – Spring & Summer
In this special two-part edition of Crofting Matters, “Crofting Through the Seasons”, we take you back to Spring/Summer last year, where Ross Mackenzie visited the Staffin Sheepdog Trials, a hugely popular event in Trotternish, on the Isle of Skye. Sheepdog trials are deeply rooted in crofting culture, normally held during the summer months, these trials…
West Coast Calves – Key Facts and Figures
Calves born and bred on the West Coast of Scotland play a hugely important role in contributing to maintaining Scotland’s critical herd mass. Suckler herds on the Western Isles contribute significantly to biodiversity, where extensive cattle grazing systems provide habitats for some of the UK’s rarest species including Pipistrelle bats, dung beetles, Great Yellow Bumblebee…