Farm Advisory Service

The Rural Roundup

News EN ↓ 90 episodes

The Rural RoundUp is Scotland’s Farm Advisory Service’s regular Podcast, hosted by Kerry Hammond, featuring a roundup of the latest news, information and opinions from some of our other Podcast show hosts. Listen to find out what new information, events and resources are available through the FAS website, and get to know someone working in Industry with our short segment “What’s on your desk?”Scotland’s Farm Advisory Service is funded by the Scottish Government. Our podcast covers a range of topics which help support your farm or croft to be more profitable and sustainable.

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Farm Advisory Service

Category

News

Latest episode

Jun 17, 2026

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Episodes

Basic Payment Scheme, the Scottish Upland Sheep Support Scheme, and an Organic success story 27.09.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Round-up hosted by me, Kerry Hammond. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode George & Tiffany bring you some good news about the Basic Payment Scheme, The Scottish Upland Sheep Support Scheme, and an Organic success story. Tiffany Stephenson also tells us about another podcast she hosts, called CropCast, and tells us what...

SPOTLIGHT: Environment 13.09.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Round-up hosted by me, Kerry Hammond. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode, George & Robert are joined by Iain Boyd, Senior Environmental Consultant at SAC Consulting, to give our quarterly Environmental update. The guys discuss water quality and scarcity, Carbon offsetting & insetting & a look at current issues...

SPOTLIGHT: Farm Health & Safety 30.08.2023

*Content Warning* This podcast discusses accidents, injuries, and fatalities, some of which involve children. Though there is no gore, and this is discussed in a factual manner, please consider if you are able to listen to this episode safely. *  Welcome back to the Rural Round-up hosted by me, Kerry Hammond. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episod...

Agriculture: Learning on the job 16.08.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Round-up. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode Tiffany, George & Robert catch up with Jennifer Mitchell and Emma Newlands to find out what they have been getting up to on their summer placements with SAC Consulting.  For more information, visit  www. FAS.scot Twitter:  @FASScot Facebook:  @FASScot National Advice H...

Farm Labour shortages, free upskilling events, and a conversation with The Soil Association 02.08.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Round-up hosted by me, Kerry Hammond. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode Tiffany, George & Robert discuss recent weather patterns, silage, a new outbreak of bird flu, and mull over the issues caused by a national labour shortage on farms. Later, we are joined by Ana Allamand, Knowledge Exchange Manager for The Soil As...

SPOTLIGHT: Policy 19.07.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Roundup. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode Tiffany, George & Robert catch up with Steven Thomson, Rural Policy specialist from SRUC for the second policy spotlight update this year.   FAS Resources   Rural Roundup - A Spotlight on Rural Policy, a Peek at the Scottish Farm Business Survey Results, and F...

Royal Highland Show, Bracken Control and Thrill of The Hill 05.07.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Roundup. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode Tiffany, George & Robert catch up after the Royal Highland Show, discuss the difficulties around Bracken Control and roundup sector performance at the moment. We are also joined by Alexander Pirie, Senior Consultant at SAC Consulting and host of the Thrill of the Hill Podcas...

SPOTLIGHT: Environment 21.06.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Round-up. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode Tiffany & George are joined by Iain Boyd, Senior Environmental Consultant at SAC Consulting for the first quarterly spotlight on the Environment. Discussing water scarcity, wildfires, water pollution and renewables, this is a valuable conversation you don’t want to miss. We...

On-Farm Events & Farmer to Farmer Learning and Talking Stock Talk 07.06.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Round-up. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode George & Robert discuss the plethora of opportunities to get onto other people’s farms to learn and get inspired, and we’re joined by Kirstyn Blackwood the producer of our sister Podcast Stock Talk who chats with me and Robert about what’s coming up in the year ahead. ...

Headlines & Deadlines, Talking Silage; Whack it, Bale it & Stack it, & Abi Mordin from Propagate 24.05.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Round-up. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode Tiffany MacTaggart and George Chalmers bring you the headlines and deadlines to note for the fortnight, George & Robert discuss silage, and I’m joined by Abi Mordin, Co-director at Propagate who tells us about what’s on her desk, in her polytunnels, greenhouses and more.&nb...

Picking out the Positives from Agricultural Sectors and Planning for Water Scarcity with SEPA 10.05.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Roundup. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode George & Robert pick out some positives from across the Sectors, and I’m joined by Nathan Critchlow-Watton , Head of Water and Planning at SEPA, Scottish Environment Protection Agency, to tell us more about planning for water scarcity in Scotland.   Show Notes&nbsp...

Pasture for Life, Exploring Unconventional Grazing, the Proposed Closure of the Forfar Mart and the Potential Consequences 26.04.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Roundup. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode we hear from Farm Advisors, Tiffany, George & Robert discussing the proposed closure of the Forfar Mart, the potential consequences of this and the need for robust infrastructure in the wider farming sector, and we’re joined by Nikki Yoxall Head of Research at Pasture for Li...

A Spotlight on Rural Policy, a Peek at the Scottish Farm Business Survey Results, and Farmer networks for Livestock Projects. 12.04.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Roundup. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode Kerry hears from Farm Advisors, Tiffany, and George who are joined by SRUC’s Steven Thomson, (Reader in Agricultural Economics and Policy) to spotlight what is happening in rural policy.  Sascha Grierson, Principal Consultant for the Scottish Farm Business Survey, joins us...

Bonus Content: Cara Cameron Loch View Rural Training 29.03.2023

Cara Cameron is a Welsh girl living in the Scottish highlands with a love of the outdoors and agriculture. She has a thirst for knowledge and also loves to be able to pass on her experiences to others. After her time studying agriculture at SRUC (formerly SAC) at Craibstone in Aberdeen, she then went on to complete a post-grad in Organic farming. Cara launched Lochview Rural Training from her own...

Getting Ready for SAF/IACS and Diving Deep into the FAS Problem Solver 22.03.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Roundup. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode Kerry hears from Farm Advisors, Tiffany, George, and Robert to find out about what’s been going on in the agricultural sector, and Sascha Grierson joins us to tell us about the FAS problem Solver and Lorna MacPherson deep dives into some of the dairy specific resources you can f...

Bonus Content: Tina MacPhail & Iain MacMillan, Grinneabhat Community Space 15.03.2023

This week the Rural Roundup is bringing you something a little different, we spoke to six diversified farm businesses across Scotland, asking them about their journeys, the conversations they had along the way, and the decisions they had to make. This week we’re going to hear the Story of Tina MacPhail, the manager of Grinneabhat Community Space who is joined by Iain MacMillan a crofting consultan...

Getting Ready for IACS, Corncrake Cover, and High Nature Value Farming 08.03.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Round-up. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode Kerry hears from Farm Advisors, Tiffany, George, and Robert to find out about what’s been going on in the agricultural sector, and Professor Davy McCracken tells us what’s on his desk.   Show Notes 00:40- Rural Roundup  13:25 – What’s coming up – events & resource...

Bonus Content: Lindsay Robertson, Long Island Retreats 01.03.2023

This week the Rural Roundup is bringing you the latest in our series of six diversified farm businesses across Scotland, asking them about their journeys, the conversations they had along the way, and the decisions they had to make. This week we’re going to hear the Story of Lindsay Robertson from Long Island Retreats. A woman who invites Shetland ponies into her home was perhaps always destined t...

Agricultural Performance, Nature Friendly Farming Network, & a Six Nations Listen 22.02.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Roundup. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode Kerry hears from Farm Advisors, Tiffany, George, and Robert to find out about what’s been going on in the agricultural sector and Phil Knott, Vice Chair of the Scotland Nature Friendly Farming Network tells us what’s on his desk.   00:42- Rural Roundup  19:26 – What’s...

Bonus Content: Laura Beck The Paw Park 15.02.2023

This week the Rural Roundup is bringing you something a little different, we spoke to six diversified farm businesses across Scotland, asking them about their journeys, the conversations they had along the way, and the decisions they had to make. This week we’re going to hear the Story of Laura Beck, from The Pawpark. The Pawpark is an exclusive use dog playpark located just outside Hawick in the...

The Agri-Environment Scheme, Big Farmland Bird Count, Nourish Scotland & Toe Health 08.02.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Round-up. This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode Kerry hears from Farm Advisors, Tiffany, George, and Robert to find out about what’s been going on in the agricultural sector and Diana Garduño Jiménez from Nourish joins us to tell us what’s on their desk, and about their toe health.   Show Notes   00:34- Rural...

Bonus Content: Caroline Hamilton, Cairns Farm Estate 01.02.2023

The incredible transformation of Cairns Farm from hill sheep farm to a gorgeous destination wedding and events venue is a wonderful success story from Caroline Hamilton and her husband, fourth generation farmer Graham. Caroline has three adult children, and whilst none of the three were keen to take on the hill farming aspect of the business, all three were incredibly proud of their home and herit...

NVZs, Budget updates, Farmstrong Scotland & a Spotlight on the Crofting Matters Podcast 25.01.2023

Welcome back to the Rural Roundup. Happy New Year and a Happy Burns Night from all of us at the Farm Advisory Service! This show is produced in association with the Scottish Government. On today’s episode we will join Farm Advisors, Tiffany, George, and Robert to find out about what’s been going on in the agricultural sector, we bring you an update on some new Farm Advisory Service resources, even...

Bonus Content: Jock Gibson, Edinvale Farm (Diversification Story) 23.01.2023

This week the Rural Roundup is bringing you something a little different, we spoke to six diversified farm businesses across Scotland, asking them about their journeys, the conversations they had along the way, and the decisions they had to make. This week we’re going to hear the story of Jock Gibson from Edinvale Farm. Jock is a partner of Edinvale Farms and Managing Director of Macbeth’s Butcher...

New Years Resolutions, Veganuary, and a spotlight on the Agri Culture Podcast. 28.12.2022

In this fortnight’s edition (recorded in advance of the festive break) Tiffany Mactaggart, is joined by Robert Ramsay and George Chalmers who discuss their farming highlights of 2022, their wishes for the next year, and their new year’s resolutions. Mary-Jane Lawrie joins us on the podcast to tell us more about Agri Culture, one of our sister podcasts. Everyone at the Farm Advisory Service, hopes...

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