“Farming can be an insular and sometimes isolating experience. In the rural bubble it can feel helpless approaching business challenges and trying to strategise for the future in what is an ever-changing industry. That is why, despite the hectic pace of day-to-day life, the Agritourism Futures Programme was such a welcome chance to step back and recalibrate.”
Helen Stewart, Knockbarry Farm, Badvo Distillery and Fair Feast Venison
Day one
We met at Cairns Farm in West Lothian. Driving in, we watched a local lady swimming in the neighbouring Harperrig Reservoir with her little yellow swimming cap bobbing over the waves, which, considering it was November, we thought rather brave!
Cairns Farm was such a bright, open, and welcoming space. We met farmers from all over Scotland and at first everyone seemed to be doing pretty different things with pretty different interests. However, as the day went on it became more and more apparent that many of the challenges we faced were the same even if we were coming at it from different angles.
Caroline Millar is the Sector Lead for Scottish Agritourism. She encouraged us to speak openly about issues of succession in family business. Farms are often a unique case as they are part-family part-business. Many people live with their families on farm and for many people, getting a wage is a squiffy business at best. It made me think back to why I started in agritourism myself, as I looked to have the best of both worlds of staying on farm and making a living. The agricultural industry is like an ocean with waves of weather and currents of policy. When asked to practice public speaking with our chair training, our group chose to focus on succession as it is at the heart of why so many people struggle for stability in agriculture. It was interesting to discuss so many different arrangements and attitudes. Some had resigned their succession right to siblings, some were in partnership, and some were at the beginning of their journey waiting for those big conversations of the future.
We concluded that succession can be difficult, but in a way, it is a privileged situation that should be celebrated. To look for succession on a farm is to look to the future with hope and choose that life for yourself. I think that is why agritourism often collides with discussions of succession as it is all about shaping your future, making room for everyone, and pushing for change.
Day two
With thoughts of farming futures and pushing for change we went for our parliament visit on day two. It was an exciting time to be in parliament with the Land Reform Bill newly passed and Natural Environment Bill in the headlights. I was interested, in particular, to meet with George Burgess, Director of Agriculture and the Rural Economy, to hear about the long-term change in policy and attitudes he has seen in his tenure. Mr Burgess reminisced how when Agritourism first spoken about in Scotland, there was uncertainty over which department to put it in – tourism or agriculture. It is after many years of advocating for agritourism to be at the heart the agriculture sector, that we are starting to realise not only the full value but the full potential of what agritourism can offer Scotland.
We went on to meet MSPs from across the political parties: we shared with them some of the challenges we face as young people in agritourism and offered our suggestions for how the government could be in support. When conversation dipped I took it as an opportunity to lecture all within hearing range of my interests in venison and the great resource that venison can be for the health of Scottish people in food scarcity. I was sure everyone had their fill of venison chat by the end of day two, but I was proven wrong when asked to speak at the Agritourism Conference.
The Scottish Agritourism Conference
The Agritourism Conference is honestly one of the highlights of my year (and that’s not just because of the copious amounts of wine included with the conference dinner!). It is so inspiring to see farmers succeeding in such a range of agritourism ventures. I was really blown away to hear about the Calvey’s Achill Mountain Lamb from County Mayo, Ireland. The Calvey family have truly done it all, with excellence in farming, butchery, branding, and storytelling. After the Achill presentation, we chuckled to ourselves as with ten siblings (!) in the Calvey family I think they would have been an interesting addition to our succession panel!
Another standout talk for me was, perhaps surprisingly, the Health and Safety Talk by Rebecca McEwan of Arnprior Farm. Health and Safety talks of ‘always wear a bike helmet’ and ‘don’t drive your tractor into powerlines’ were pale in comparison to Rebecca’s top hits of blocking the motorway with the traffic to host a pumpkin patch party, or unintentionally spraying a farm visitor in the face with sheep’s milk straight from the teat. These are the health and safety concerns we want to know about. The instances of unexpected havoc that need to be negotiated when you welcome the public onto your farm.
I was excited to get the opportunity to talk at the Conference – and talk I did. The diversification I’m currently working on is Fair Feast, a community interest company that processes wild deer from my farm (an area of extreme population and environmental damage) into venison parcels for food banks and community larders. Fair Feast is a social enterprise and non-profit that funds it’s donations by selling a portion – 30-50% of each deer. It’s been an exciting year introducing venison to people who have never tried it before, and we have now donated two tonnes of venison within Perthshire – that’s around 20,000 people fed. One year on we are now launching a Fair Feast Butcher shop in central Pitlochry where sales will fund tens of thousands of meals for those in food scarcity permanently.
I love, not just talking about deer, but about how agritourism can deliver for more than agriculture and tourism. We can deliver for health, education, wellbeing. Economic good for the farm can intersect with environmental and social good. What’s so good about sharing what you’re up to the Scottish Agritourism Conference is all the people who come to speak to you afterwards. So many people came up to me to offer support and see how they could get involved. The spirit of Agritourism is one of collaboration.
Overall, reflecting on our few days away I was really left with a feeling of positivity for our sector and its possibilities. Agritourism has a proactive mindset and rather than just pointing out the pitfalls of the industry. We are encouraged to showcase success stories, learn from each other, and push for the future we wish to see. I have never met a group of people who are so excited for each other’s success. As the conference drew to a close and we snacked on delicious Isle of Mull Cheese, we all promised to meet up at the Global Agritourism Conference in 2026.
In the stormy seas of agriculture and tourism, Scottish Agritourism as an organisation has been a constant. The Agritourism Futures Program has illustrated how we can make a difference, influence policy, advocate for ourselves and have a future that we too can be excited about.