Farming For a Better Climate: Recent Episodes
Farming For a Better Climate
Farming for a Better Climate (FFBC) provides practical support to benefit the farm and help reduce our impact on the climate. Taking action as a sector, both to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to adapt to a changing climate, will secure farm viability for future generations.
FFBC is run by SRUC on behalf of the Scottish Government. We combine ideas trialled by our volunteer Climate Change Focus Farms and information from up-to-the-minute scientific research. We offer practical advice to help you choose the most relevant measures to improve both your farm performance and resilience to future climate change effects.
Interested in hearing more about the benefits of weighing cattle? In this podcast, SAC Consultants Lorna MacPherson and Lorna Shaw are joined by beef farmers Andrew Houstoun of Glenkilrie Farm and Iain Wilkinson of Balgay Farm. The discussion focuses on the use of technology to improve the ease of collecting weight data and how that data can be used to help drive improvements in efficiency. We hear about cow efficiency, with the aim of breeding smaller cows, using data to select heifers for replacements, weaning strategies, creep feeding and growth performance.
Feed efficiency is a term that is being increasingly used and discussed in the cattle industry in the UK as well as globally. In this podcast, Dr David Bell (SAC Consulting) talks with Robert Gilchrist (Aberdeen Angus Cattle Society) and Seth Wareing (Stabiliser Cattle Company) and takes an in depth look at this topic and what it means to the beef industry.
This is the final of our Improving efficiency in sheep flocks podcast series. In this episode we hear SAC Consulting's Senior Beef & Sheep Specialist Kirsten Williams chat with Donald Barrie, Farm manager at Glensaugh, one of the research farms run by the James Hutton Institute. Donald explains how the farm is operated and the key areas of management for the sheep flocks - health, nutrition and genetics, to ensure maximum productivity.
In the second of our Improving efficiency in sheep flocks podcast series, we hear Nicola Lambe, a researcher with SRUC chat with SAC Consulting's Senior Beef & Sheep Consultant Kirsten Williams. They discuss how exactly research is tracking greenhouse gas emissions from sheep and the role of genetics within that.
This is the first in a 3 part mini series focusing on improving efficiencies in the sheep flock. We hear from SAC Consulting's Senior beef & Sheep specialist, Kirsten Williams, and SRUC Vet, Fiona Crowden discussing a range of common health problems that can be found within any sheep flock.
In this podcast you will hear from Sac Consulting's Lorna Galloway and Robert Ramsay, who discuss soils fertiliser and recent trial work being undertaken at Woodhead farm. this practical podcast will give you hits and tips to make better use of your farm resources and improve your profitability.
Here Séamus Murphy and SAC Consulting’s Iain Boyd discuss the wider picture around our journey towards net zero and some of the drivers encouraging action towards environmental targets.
With carbon sequestration schemes around woodland planting and peatland restoration being viable options for some farms, how do you know your scheme is having an impact and worth the claims they are making? Here Séamus Murphy talks to SAC Consulting’s Jack Zuill to find out more.
Here Séamus Murphy and Robert Ramsay speak to SAC Consulting’s energy and carbon specialist John Farquhar to look at the additional carbon emissions accrued through the wider supply chain, and how suppliers may be looking to minimise some of these emissions.
SAC Specialist Lorna MacPherson joins regular hosts Séamus Murphy and Robert Ramsay to take a look at the dairy sector, and how marginal gains across the business can help to improve both climate and financial performance.
Séamus Murphy and Robert Ramsay take a look at the beef sector, and how farmers are building in resilience and on-farm efficiencies.
SAC Consultant and Farming for a Better Climate facilitator for the Soil Regen Ag Group, Zach Reilly joins Séamus Murphy and Robert Ramsay to talk about some of the pressures on the arable sector in terms of commodity prices, and discusses how adopting or modifying regenerative ag techniques could benefit soils and consequently yields on some farms.
Farming for a Better Climate podcast hosts Séamus Murphy and Robert Ramsay are joined by Senior Consultant Jennifer Struthers to talk about the sheep sector and scope for improving efficiencies, touching on the balance between carbon and biodiversity.
In the first of our sector-focused series, SAC Consultant George Chalmers joins regular hosts Séamus Murphy and Robert Ramsay to give us a snapshot of activities in the pig sector over the past year, and how pig producers are working to improve on-farm efficiencies.
Image Credit: ScotGov Rural - afrc.es.18.4.14 (10) | Large White x Landrace Pigs. Traquair… | Flickr
In this episode Seamus Murphy and Robert Ramsay speak to SAC Consultings Iain Boyd about the current energy crisis, how we got here and what farmers can do in terms of reducing energy requirements. The discussion looks at the benefits of getting renewables on farm today and what the future may hold for on farm energy generation touching on battery storage and hydrogen.
In this episode the focus moves from carbon markets to the wider policy and market driver for carbon related work on farms. Robert Ramsay and Seamus Murphy speak to Consultant Alex Pirie about a range of issues, the discussion touches on current and future agricultural policy, the importance of the carbon audit and how market drivers and aligned contracts will contribute to a changing industry.
In this episode Seamus Murphy is joined again by Robert Ramsay and specialist John Farquhar to discuss the reasons why there is growing interest in carbon markets in agriculture. They discuss why companies are looking down their supply chain to reduce emissions and also as a means of offsetting. They also touch on what that might look like for farming in the future.
Carbon markets are becoming more common in land use and the potential for farmers to benefit financially from carbon offsets is an opportunity many farmers are looking into. In forestry carbon markets have been long used to help financially support project creation and in this podcast Seamus Murphy and Robert Ramsay speak to Forestry consultant Ben Law about what carbon markets are and how they work.
In this Episode Agricultural consultants Zach Reilly and David Ross speak about the positives of reduced tillage from a soil, financial and carbon perspectives. They also highlight some of the challenges of incorporating such a system and look at what practical steps can be taken to start on a pathway to reduced tillage and regenerative agriculture.
Farming For a Better Climate: Adapting to climate change
As interest grows in tackling the climate crisis globally and with COP26 coming to Glasgow in November Scottish farmers are becoming more aware and interested in carbon and the challenge of net zero. With all the talk focusing on reducing emissions it can be easy to forget that climate change is already upon us, and adapting your business to our changing climate is vital for a sustainable future for Scottish agriculture.
In this episode Séamus Murphy speaks to Environment consultant Iain Boyd and Anna Beswick of Adaptation Scotland about what the impacts of climate change are going to be on Scotland and Scottish agriculture. The podcast focuses on what can be done now to build resilience into current farm businesses to ensure a sustainable future. The recent SAC Consulting publication 'Climate change adaptation for agriculture Is your farm ready?' is discussed heavily and can be found on the Farming For a Better Climate website.
In this episode SAC Consulting sheep specialist Poppy Frater speaks to farmers Alex Brewster of Rotmell Farm and Graham Lofthouse of Bankhouse farm about their own respective grazing strategies. Both Alex and Graham are on a journey to improve their grazing but have done so in different ways while dealing with the different challenges of soils, weather and animal behaviour thrown up over the years on each of their farms. Both farmers highlight the importance of finding a system that suits your farm business and that one size doesn't fit all when it comes to grazing strategies.
In this Farming for a Better Climate podcast environment consultant Séamus Murphy and dairy specialist Dr.Lorna MacPherson speak to dairy farmer Alistair Marshall and farm manager Ken McFeely of Hardgrove Farm. The discussion looks at how Hardgrove Farm has managed to increase efficiency in production, which can ultimately reduce emissions, through an increased focus on health and fertility planning over the last few years. There are lots of take away points for any farmer looking to improve efficiency in the dairy herd and reduce their carbon footprint.
Visit our website to find out more about Farming For a Better Climate and how to Work Towards Net Zero with the Dairy Herd.
In this episode Poppy Frater, SAC Consulting's Sheep & Grassland Specialist chats with Nikki Yoxall, from Grampian Graziers and Finn Weddle, a farm advisor and director within Reforesting Scotland.
Find out more in our Practical Guide: Agroforestry for beef and sheep farmers
Poppy, Nikki and Finn have a really interesting discussion about the many benefits of Agroforestry systems, from improved animal welfare with the improved shelter, nutritional benefits from grazing access to different tree species and other health benefits, e.g. parasitic control from the naturally occurring chemicals ingested with the range of plants found within a woodland flora.
Nikki farms rare breed, native cattle in Aberdeenshire and provides interesting updates and posts on the #TheWeeMob on her Twitter page @Howemill. (Photo credit for this podcast image goes to Nikki Yoxall)
Finn can be found on Twitter at @DesignAndConker where you can access his regular 'Regenerative Livelihood Podcast'
In this episode, we hear from Lorna MacPherson, Senior Dairy Consultant with SAC Consulting, and Megan Fergusson, Veterinary Investigation Office with SRUC Veterinary Services. The topics discussed include improving herd health, fertility and nutrition as ways to improve efficiencies within the dairy herd. Find out more about improving efficiencies and farm profitability on our website www.farmingforabetterclimate.org
In this episode we listen in as Beef Specialist Consultant, Robert Ramsay, chats to Sam Parson, the Farms Estate Director at the Balcaskie Estate, Fife.
Sam explains that the farm has a 50-year outlook for the business and as a result both economic resilience and climate change led farm management changes. The estate is now transitioning the in-hand farm enterprises to a fully organic status incorporating a more regenerative system. We hear more about the grazing management employed on the estate, including the practicalities of managing bale and rotation grazing systems.
Find out more about the Balcaskie Estate at https://bit.ly/3gz7J3y
In this episode, we revisit Woodhead near Newmilns in Ayrshire and chat with dairy farmer John Kerr and SAC Agricultural consultant Alex Pirie.
John was a Climate Change Focus Farm host from 2014 - 2018 and made significant financial savings whilst reducing his farm carbon footprint by 6%. We hear his thoughts about the project, what he gained from his time as a host and how he has continued to make further improvements to the farm business to further increase business efficiency.
Find out more about the Climate Change Focus Farm project; our current Soil Regenerative Agriculture Group and ways in which you can make changes to improve your farm carbon footprint and business efficiency on our website: www.farmingforabetterclimate.org and on Facebook & Twitter at @SACFarm4Climate
In this episode, we hear Professor Davy McCracken (SRUC Hill & Mountain Research Centre at Kirkton & Auchtertyre) chat to Séamus Murphy (SAC Consulting) about Climate Change in Agriculture and Rewilding.