Rural Economy | SEFARI

Error message

Warning: Array to string conversion in sefari_preprocess_html() (line 111 of themes/custom/sefari/sefari.theme).

sefari_preprocess_html()
call_user_func_array() (Line: 261)
Drupal\Core\Theme\ThemeManager->render() (Line: 490)
Drupal\Core\Render\Renderer->doRender() (Line: 248)
Drupal\Core\Render\Renderer->render() (Line: 158)
Drupal\Core\Render\MainContent\HtmlRenderer->Drupal\Core\Render\MainContent\{closure}() (Line: 637)
Drupal\Core\Render\Renderer->executeInRenderContext() (Line: 153)
Drupal\Core\Render\MainContent\HtmlRenderer->renderResponse() (Line: 90)
Drupal\Core\EventSubscriber\MainContentViewSubscriber->onViewRenderArray()
call_user_func() (Line: 111)
Drupal\Component\EventDispatcher\ContainerAwareEventDispatcher->dispatch() (Line: 186)
Symfony\Component\HttpKernel\HttpKernel->handleRaw() (Line: 76)
Symfony\Component\HttpKernel\HttpKernel->handle() (Line: 53)
Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\Session->handle() (Line: 48)
Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\KernelPreHandle->handle() (Line: 28)
Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\ContentLength->handle() (Line: 32)
Drupal\big_pipe\StackMiddleware\ContentLength->handle() (Line: 201)
Drupal\page_cache\StackMiddleware\PageCache->fetch() (Line: 138)
Drupal\page_cache\StackMiddleware\PageCache->lookup() (Line: 87)
Drupal\page_cache\StackMiddleware\PageCache->handle() (Line: 48)
Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\ReverseProxyMiddleware->handle() (Line: 51)
Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\NegotiationMiddleware->handle() (Line: 36)
Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\AjaxPageState->handle() (Line: 51)
Drupal\Core\StackMiddleware\StackedHttpKernel->handle() (Line: 741)
Drupal\Core\DrupalKernel->handle() (Line: 19)

Common Interest Groups: Helping smaller businesses to succeed through partnership

The food and drink supply chain is dominated by small and micro businesses. In Scotland more than 95% of businesses in the sector employ less than 12 people. Many of these smaller companies have a common desire to grow and succeed but this can be is hampered by their size. They often lack the human, technical and financial resources of larger companies to invest in New Product Development (NPD) or to optimise their market position and business processes.

The Demographic Challenges Facing Scotland's Sparsely Populated Areas

This case study summarises ongoing work exploring how changes in the population of remote and rural areas in Scotland affect the social, economic and ecological resilience of these areas. The Sparsely Populated Areas (SPA) of Scotland have a demographic legacy which, in the absence of intervention, will result in decades of population decline, and shrinkage of its working-age population, on a scale which implies serious challenges for economic development, and consequences for its landscape and ecology which are poorly understood.

How might our farmers adapt to a public money for public goods regime?

There is still a lot of water to flow under the bridge before the scale and shape of future public funding to farmers and other land managers becomes clearer. But with Brexit rapidly approaching – and with each new model of theoretical scenarios suggesting that major changes to current support levels are inevitable – then one major topic of debate revolves around the suggestion that future support for land management will primarily be targeted at the provision of public goods.

The economic cost of animal disease: Winners and losers from Johne’s disease

SEFARI scientists, in collaboration with other research partners, provide evidence which informs the Scottish Government about the economic consequences of animal diseases. Our multi-disciplinary approach uses a mathematical and economic model to explore the winners and losers of Johne’s disease in the Scottish dairy herd. Our results indicate the extent to which both farmers of dairy herds infected with Johne’s and milk consumers, lose out as a result of the disease, while farmers of uninfected herds benefit.

Thomson, S., Et al. (2018) Farm Workers in Scottish Agriculture: Case Studies in the International Seasonal Migrant Labour Market

This report presents key findings from a project which aimed to provide a better understanding of the use of seasonal workers of non-UK origin in Scottish agriculture. Evidence was collected from a range of sources including Scottish Government administrative data, surveys of farmers and seasonal migrant workers, farmer and wider stakeholder interviews, and group interviews with seasonal migrant workers.

The Fruits of Their Labour: Seasonal Farm Workers in Scottish Agriculture

Scotland’s agricultural sector relies heavily on seasonal non-UK workers, particularly from central and eastern Europe, to meet its labour demand. Despite their importance for this sector, there was a lack of detailed information about them This case study draws on findings from SRUC’s recent study, funded by the Scottish Government, which aimed to improve our understanding of the labour market in Scottish agriculture.

Protecting Potatoes: Unearthing Scotland’s Story

By Max Coleman, RBGE

The Rural Innovation Support Service

By Megan Welford, RISS

The Rural Innovation Support Service (RISS) launched in February 2018, with the aim of enabling farmers, foresters and crofters in Scotland to explore their innovative ideas through collaboration. RISS is funded by the European and Scottish Rural Development Programmes.

Celebrating young people in Scotland’s land based industries

If you are planning to attend this year’s Royal Highland Show, you could join us for our networking event celebrating the place of young people in Scotland’s land based industries.

The opening address will be delivered by the Minister for Employability and Training, Jamie Hepburn MSP, followed by contributions from Professor Wayne Powell, Principal and Chief Executive, Scotland's Rural College and a personal perspective from Sarah Millar, Farming and Land Use Manager, Soil Association Scotland.

Sorry, this event has already happened. Have a look at our upcoming events.

The Royal Highland Show – The Full Picture

As the SEFARI Knowledge Exchange Sectorial Lead for Soils and Crops, Ken's particularly interested in how plant roots play a critical role in mechanically stabilising soil, so he never thought he’d be enlisting the help of a Pufferfish to communicate research!

Subscribe to Rural Economy