– Proposed potato pool was put to more than 200 potato growers and others in 1930 in Edinburgh to hear of a proposed scheme for marketing Scottish potatoes.

JP Ross Taylor, president of the National Farmers' Union of Scotland, was in the chair and George G Mercer, Southfield, Dalkeith, chairman of the potato committee of the Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society, said they had come through bad times but seldom had they had to sell potatoes at 30s a tonne. This was the second year in succession they had had to face such prices and unless action was taken, he did not see how they could expect a different state of affairs to prevail in the future.

– In 1931, during June, much of the 100th Highland Show had to be cancelled due to foot-and-mouth. The weather for the 100th Highland Show – staged at Saughton, near Gorgie, Edinburgh – was glorious, but the event was blighted by the outbreak the previous week, which resulted in the Ministry of Food and Fisheries placing a standstill order on the whole of GB on June 19, 1931.

Consequently, no cattle, sheep or pigs could be shown, with only horses and poultry permitted. However, while the absence of livestock kept many rural visitors away, the urban population turned out in force, particularly on the Thursday, to see HRH the Prince of Wales at the event. Paid admissions that day were a record 48,767, as compared with 49,189 on the third day at Edinburgh, in 1919. Attendance during the four days of the show in 1931 was 76,310 – the second highest figure ever recorded. The first cases of foot-and-mouth, which were linked to the importation of cattle from Ireland, were found in Lancs and Westmorland, with further cases confirmed in Angus and Kincardine. By the end of the first week, 31 cases of foot-and-mouth had been confirmed which resulted in all sheep, cattle and pigs on such farms being slaughtered and cremated.

– In June, 1932, the Milk Marketing Scheme – The committee of milk producers formulating a scheme under the Agricultural Markerting Act for the Regulation of the Marketing of Milk in Scotland, had completed its labours and the scheme has been duly submitted to the Secretary of State for Scotland. The 100th show of livestock at the Highland Show, took place at the 101st Highland show, at Inverness, in June 1932, but despite brilliant sunshine throughout the four days, attendance was easily the lowest of all the post-war shows and almost half that of the previous event, at 38,619.

– In December, 1933, the Smithfield champion of the time, was later disqualified. James Craig's two Galloway steers – Gold Flake and Mike V – which won the supreme and junior male championships at the fatstock show a fortnight earlier, were disqualified following a council for the Smithfield Club meeting after reports by the club's show stewards and by a panel of veterinary experts. The SF reported that both steers had been the subject of malpractice and their decision to disqualify both came under rule 23 of the club's prize schedule. The decision, however, did not necessarily reflect the honesty of Mr Craig and his servants. The question the council had to consider was solely whether the two steers had been tampered with – not when, where or by whom or whether with dishonest or with malicious intent. Unfortunately, the nature of the malpractice is not mentioned in the statement, but, unofficially, it has been announced that turpentine or some kind of kindred substance had been injected into the animals !