FARMERS ACROSS Scotland are being urged to get involved in the new 'Better Grazing' programme launched this week by Quality Meat Scotland.

The project, which is being offered free of charge, follows the QMS Grazing Group project which came to an end in March this year, which reportedly attracted a "huge amount of interest from farmers" keen to make the best use of grazed grass as a low-cost feed option.

The 'Better Grazing' initiative will now establish six regional groups – in Perth, Inverurie, Inverness, Campbeltown, Lockerbie and Melrose – each meeting four times a year to find ways to improve the utilisation of grass and increase the kilogrammes of meat produced per hectare.

But in a change in format from the previous project, the new programme won’t be based around a host farm, instead using farm visits to those who have already made changes to their grazing management or to new group members keen to do so.

The meetings will involve a range of expert speakers, as well as farmers from around Scotland who will share their experiences of how they have improved their grassland management and the benefits they have seen.

One will be Alex Brewster, from Rotmell Farm, near Dunkeld, who will be speaking at the launch of the Inverness regional grazing group on August 11. He runs 800 Blackface ewes and 100 commercial Aberdeen Angus cows on his 986-hectare farm and hosted the previous QMS Perthshire Grazing Group.

“There is no doubt the grazing group experience has put us on the right road to building a viable business in what is just now an uncertain farming industry,” said Mr Brewster.

QMS head of industry development Douglas Bell encouraged farmers to get involved: “The 'Better Grazing' programme provides a great opportunity for livestock farmers to improve their current grazing management and the impact on their bottom line.

“Farmers involved with the original QMS Grazing Group project have shown that making changes to their grazing has led to an increase in their farms profitability, not only through reduced costs but also by increasing output.”

The first round of meetings will be held at the Gloagburn Farm Coffee Shop, Perth on Wednesday August 9; the Thainstone Centre, Inverurie on Thursday August 10; NTS Culloden, Inverness on Friday August 11; the Ardshiel Hotel, Campbeltown on Monday August 14; the Dryfesdale Hotel, Lockerbie on Wednesday August 16; and Melrose Rugby Club on Thursday August 17.

Places at these events are limited and will be allocated on a first come first served basis. For more information, contact QMS on 0131 472 4040 or email info@qmscotland.co.uk