The first-ever Scottish Agriculture Awards honoured pioneering and visionary leaders in the industry

The overall winner on the night was the diversified farm of the year from Kenneth and Eleanor Bone and their three children Cameron, Euan, and Hannah from Glenkiln farm on the Isle of Arran. The mixed business was deemed the best diversified farm and also judged to be the supreme entry overall and took home the first-ever Champion of Champions award.

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Kenneth said: “I’m ecstatic. We used to be a dairy farm 20 years ago but stopped when we couldn’t make ends meet and were forced to diversify.

“We started off with liveries and added long-term lets after converting farm cottages. We also built new houses for long-term lets, and that gave us enough income to look at a hydro scheme, and then we got the chance to buy the local restaurant and pub. From there, we built an indoor riding arena as our latest venture.

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“It’s been difficult, starting off at a low point. Dairying is difficult on an island – my wife used to go on holiday with the kids while I was stuck on the farm, and I knew something had to change at that point, and it’s why we had to look at other things.”

Fiona Grierson from SAC Consulting, who sponsored the diversification award, said: “Diversifying your income streams, diversifying your approach can actually build good long-term resilience. I think the interest in the farm supporting the economic sustainability of the island with its challenges around accommodation and providing jobs, incomes, and homes for local young people to stay on the island really resonated as having a social impact and how you leverage the natural assets on the farm, and I think this is a lovely example of a business that does the right thing taking the long view – how can you not be inspired by that?”