RHASS supports #Farm24

On August 8th 2024, #Farm24, run by Farmer’s Guardian since 2015 and sponsored by Morrisons, celebrates farmers and the incredible work they do every day to provide us with produce as well as safe guarding our beautiful countryside.

RHASS decided to show support for this fantastic initiative by highlighting the hard work our very own directors do on their farms throughout the year!

Anne Logan

Neil Thomson

Gordon Gray

‘We live on an upland sheep and beef farm in the Scottish Borders and my role is as a working partner along with my wife and son.

The job pictured is that of bringing  in hay bales from the field to store inside for winter feeding for our sheep and cattle.

This job should be done as soon as possible after the hay is baled providing the hay was dry enough, if it wasn’t then it’s better left outside for a week or two so that air can get in and around it to take the heat out of the bales, otherwise the hay shed could go up in flames!’

Aylett Roan

Aylett manages her Dairy, Beef & Sheep farm as well as Roan’s Dairy, processing their own milk to deliver to doorsteps all over Dumfries & Galloway & a Mobile Milkshake Bar, The Udder Bar.

‘I am gathering cows for their routine vet visit & stopped to give my favourite cow a hug. We routinely work with the cows before breakfast, they are fed before us, clean their beds, the robots are washed down and all cows are check to see if okay , if any of them have not been taking themselves to be milked we do that.

All our animals are our lively hood, happy animals thrive, so we tend to their every need, the dairy cows more so as they are the Princess’s of the Cow world.  We make sure that everything we do gives them a happy & healthy life!’

Jim Warnock

Managing Director of J.W Agri Ltd in Stirling, Jim is doing seed inspections to ensure high quality of seeds!

Andrew Rennie

‘I’m out with our Oilseed Rape swather in Turriff, Aberdeenshire. The crop is usually swathed end of July. This is to stop the plants growing and let them die off and dry out.

Oilseed Rape is a good break crop to grow on the farm as part of our rotation. There is quite a short window of a couple of days to get the optimal timing for swathing with these machines running 24 hours a day – rain or shine.’

Kay Adam

Kay is at her Free Range poultry unit with laying hens in Angus!

‘I am poultry manager looking after the hens and egg production, checking over the birds in the morning. I love my job and my hens, we diversified into poultry to add to our mixed farming unit just over a year ago.’

Sandy Wilkie MBE DL FRAgS

Retired Milkman and Dairy businessman, Sandy lives at Bardykes Farm, Blantyre, hosting a group of incoming Rwandan Young Farmers to learn more about the industry and inspiring future farmers!

Eric Mutch

At his livestock farm in Turiff, Aberdeenshire, Eric is rogueing wild oats of spring barley  during the day.

‘Wild oat is an evasive weed which needs to be removed to ensure a quality product!’

Susan Lawrie

Susan looks after the finances of a dairy farm in Milnathort.

‘This is me with grandson Drew getting calves ready for Kinross Show. This is usually done a few weeks before the shows to get the calves used to being handled before being taken to young handler classes at the Highland Show, Great Yorkshire Show, Lanark Calf Show and Kinross Show so far this year.

There is also an All Breeds All Britain Calf Show held in Staffordshire in September which we sometimes attend.

The calves need to be well handled before being introduced to their young leaders.  The last thing you want is the young handlers to get a fright or get injured.  Calves that are learnt to lead at a young age like these will often go on to be part of our show team as cows and once broken to the halter at an early age they are much easier to handle when fully grown.  Getting calves and cows out to shows is our shop window for selling Heifers, Cows and potential Bulls Mothers  for AI.’

Blyth Brewster

At their mixed farm in Stilring, Blyth is getting on with sheep shearing!

‘This work is so undertaken once a year, and it’s important to ensure the health and welfare of the sheep is maintained. Sheep don’t shed their wool and without clipping the wool from them they can overheat as well as becoming susceptible to fly strike if they were left unshorn. Fly strike is when fly’s lay eggs in the dirty wool and maggots will eat into the sheep’s skin.’

James Logan

James is a third-generation farmer, who took over the farm in Athelstaneford Mains near North Berwick from his father and developed it to the arable and potato farm it is today.  Him and his wife Elinor started The Veg Shed, a veg shop with a difference which was started to diversify the farm by offering fresh potatoes, eggs and vegetables from a vending machine.

Will Downie

Ellands is an Arable farm in the Highlands just East on Nairn and Will Downie is a partner in the 4th generation farm business.

‘We are topping grass today to keep field margins free of weeds.  It is extremely important to stop weed seeds encroaching into the fields and it keeps the farm tidy.’

Heather Wildman

I assist with admin and paperwork, HR and staff reviews, staff accommodation, HSE, and help moving cattle and getting stray cattle back in on our dairy farm in Kirkcudbright!

I help sort dairy heifers, these are the pregnant ladies who have been down at our young stock farm. Once they are getting close to giving birth we identify them and bring them up to the main farm to become acclimatised and meet the other mums ready to give birth. They have a lovely large straw bedded pen that allows them to be much more comfortable and have more room to give birth.  This is really important as giving birth and producing their calf if the most important part of their job, it is essential that it all goes as naturally, calmly and smoothly as possible to ensure both mum and baby are fit, well and happy.

We check the cows each day at feeding times and when we clean out the shed and look for ladies who are getting close to birthing so this happens at least once per day each day and it is generally in the morning, but this can vary depending on what else is happening on the farm and staff and transport availability