What a difference a month makes! Rain has brought much-needed relief for many arable farmers following a cold and dry April. Apart from being the month, we're warned not to "cast a cloot", May is also National Walking Month. Unsurprisingly, the Scene & Herd team are all outdoor enthusiasts and share their tips on making the most of your time out of doors below:
Monty suggests combining a work phone call with a walk in the fresh air. The Scene & Herd team are always happy to arrange walking meetings to discuss any aspect of marketing or PR for your rural business.
Jan's top tip is to take a pair of litter pickers with you to keep the countryside looking beautiful and safe for its inhabitants. You can report any flytipping here.
Dave suggests listening to a podcast whilst out walking. We cover a diverse range of topics on our OnFARM (Food, Agriculture and Rural Matters) podcast. The most recent episodes include:
You can listen to all episodes, for free, at www.podfollow.com/OnFARM.
News
The Improving Public Access fund can be used to create or improve an existing path (with gates, steps, seating, signage etc). Applications for funding close on 30 June 2021.
Ian Brydson (pictured below) Territory Sales Manager in Scotland for machinery manufacturer Krone, has recently also been appointed as a Director of AgriScot. Ian’s appointment to the board coincided with the signing of a new deal between AgriScot and the RHASS to secure the future of the farm business event at Ingliston for the next 5 years. Read more
The dairy sector will have the chance to shine in 2021 as the search for the Scottish Dairy Farm of the Year gets underway. The SDFOTY Award presentation will be made alongside presentations for the Arable, Scotch Beef, Sheep and the new Diversified Farm of the year titles at AgriScot on 17th November. For further information on any of the awards, to nominate or to enter, organisers can be contacted at info@agriscot.co.uk in the first instance.
Anyone living in the countryside knows how unreliable postcodes are for giving directions. what3words has assigned each 3m square in the world a unique 3-word address that will never change – and is recognised by the emergency services. For example /tribune.carbon.distanced marks SkyeSkyns Sheepskin Tannery, Shop & Visitor Centre and /snacks.procured.ranch is shorthand for the Buffalo Farm. Download the app now before you need it!
A new group has been established within the Scottish Association of Young Farmers Clubs (SAYFC). The “Communications & Marketing Group” has been tasked with better promoting SAYFC, its constituent clubs throughout Scotland and young farmers as a movement.
Scene & Herd were brought on board by SAYFC at the pilot stage of the group late last year and have advised on its role and remit and mentored and encouraged the young farmers involved.
Monty states: “This is a great project to be involved in, I got so much out of my own time in young farmers and it’s a privilege to now be able to give something back. When SAYFC asked us for help and advice, we could have simply treated them like any other client and worked out and subsequently delivered on a PR and marketing campaign. However, we thought that it would be great to treat this differently and instead of us being in the driving seat I am working with the members of this new group to mentor them and help them devise and deliver their own plans. I believe that this way, not only will SAYFC benefit from increased marketing efforts but also the group members will pick up new transferable PR and marketing skills – a win, win and highly rewarding to be involved with!”
“SAYFC is actively looking for mentors across the board, to match with individuals and groups and to help young people in the countryside develop their life skills, please get in touch if you think you might be able to help.”
“Young farmers clubs across Scotland have also – like many groups and societies - had a tough time during the pandemic, whilst many have risen to the challenge of providing virtual meetings and online activity, not all have been able to. Without active programmes, some members have sadly drifted away and many have not felt the need to pay their annual membership subscription, which in turn has left the clubs and SAYFC struggling financially. Just at the time when clubs are hoping to bounce back and get on with some of their more usual summer activity, some are finding things a bit difficult due to lack of funds. I hope that anyone in the farming community reading this, especially those who benefitted from young farmers in their own youth, might make the effort to reach out to their local clubs, or perhaps visit the SAYFC website and become a Friend of SAYFC. Any help will be appreciated and I know that the young farmers themselves – who are often the first to organise fundraising efforts for local charities – find it difficult to ask!”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYtlVrt9GNQ
June dates for your social promotions:
1 - World Milk Day - use the hashtag #EnjoyDairy to join in the campaign highlighting the importance of milk as a global food
5 - World Environment Day - share stories, news and tips using the hashtag #GenerationRestoration
21 - Longest Day/Summer Solstice25 - Last day of the school term (most of Scotland).
Tell us your news, and we'll share it in the next newsletter and of course, please get in touch if we can help with any aspect of marketing or PR for your rural business.
Anna Davies: Email: anna@sceneandherdpr.co.uk
Ross (Monty) Montague: Email: monty@sceneandherdpr.co.uk
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