Dangers of being 'over informed'

THE less said about 2015 the better …

It's been cold and wet with grass growth being extremely slow and the effects of this has reemerged in the form of poor silage analysis throughout the county, with our own sample showing a lack of protein and high potential acid load.

However, we are glad to have it in the pit and, with most of the barley on the island harvested (that is the fields not completely eaten by the geese), it is with tentative optimism I look out the window to see most of our cows and calves still outside on an unseasonably warm November 3, and not complaining too much about it!

Orkney's poor summer has been well reported. However, speaking to farmers across the country, we are certainly not alone and it has been a year of challenges that very few sectors industry-wide will want to repeat again.

On reflection, despite the weather, we can be thankful that store prices have remained strong, with an unprecedented number of fattening cattle leaving the Orkney Islands over the summer period.

We have also benefited from readily available feed grain and straw, with an even more unprecedented number of shipments of both coming into the island.

The efforts of the Orkney and Scottish Business rings, along with various other businesses, have to be commended in sourcing and transporting these commodities up here.

Also worth noting is the support being offered by RSABI and NFUS in supporting people facing challenges in our rural communities and they have made a great effort to publicise the support on offer and I am sure they have been of great assistance to people needing their help.

Looking forward to the winter, there are challenges that have been caused by the poor summer, but at least we have feed and bedding in the stores despite the extra costs associated with shipping them up.

At the recent Orkney County Harvest Home, local vet and top entertainer, Andy Cant, suggested people take stock and compare our situation with everyone else on this planet - when you go through the various scenarios people are facing, we are in the global top 10% for living conditions.

It doesn't make the difficulties we face any easier, but at the same time you don't help yourself if you are constantly moaning and don't look to the positives.

As a beef farmer, the recent media frenzy to demonise meat has been extremely frustrating and quite worrying. The rush to make headlines comparing meat to cigarettes sold newspapers I'm sure, but it will be interesting to see how last week's revelations will affect the public's view of our product.

It was good to see QMS was quick to post a rebuttal that countered the claims with facts which I would recommend everyone should verse up on so you can efficiently shut down any arguments with militant vegans spouting their propaganda.

But the one fact that stood out to me was, in more than 900 tests carried out, only one substance tested to have no link to cancer which makes you wonder if just living is killing us?

These scare stories seem to do nobody any good except the media and the people concocting fad diets, but with so much conflicting information flying around there is a growing number of cases of orthorexia, a condition where people are so obsessed with the damage caused by the food they are eating they end up seriously ill by not eating anything but 'clean foods' such as kale and spinach.

It seems improbable, but some people are 'over-informed' and the damage can be just as devastating as other eating conditions, such as anorexia.

The simple fact that we should all be aware of is the key to good health is to eat a balanced diet containing the different food groups.

Over zealous media reports have sensationalised the dangers of eating eggs and butter in the past, but they have come full circle to be back on the healthy list, so hopefully the virtues of meat will overcome the fears and will remain a part of the recommended healthy diet.

Another crusade that has been launched against livestock is the link between cattle and global warming. I watched the documentary Cowspiracy after reading posts on Facebook urging everyone to watch it.

The claims were nothing new, with the main body of evidence being the now outdated UN's livestock's long shadow report, and throughout the documentary the vegan warrior cherry-picked and manipulated the facts to suit his viewpoint, tainting all meat production with the worst practices going on in the world.

Scotland is ideally suited to growing livestock with many areas having an incompatible climate to produce anything else, and with a plentiful supply of fresh water, we are not draining local wells and preventing access to clean water.

We do not have any areas of rainforest being cut down; the only human rights violations going on are self inflicted on ourselves and we have a world class supply chain.

Our produce is of the highest quality without the use of hormones and strict controls over the use of medication and what we can feed means that consumers can be assured of a premium product.

What is really worrying is that these campaigns against our industries are targeting a whole new generation directly on social media and if the public do decide that meat and dairy production is killing the world, then Scotland's industry needs to be vocal in promoting the strengths mentioned above.

Looking ahead, marketing will be vital to promote the positive virtues of our industry and products and if we can showcase our strengths we may stand a chance against our global competitors.

When you look at these facts, we have a sustainable industry that is not killing the planet, so hopefully there will be a market for our produce for generations to come.

However, this will only happen if the mass public decides to buy on quality rather than price, and this remains to be seen.

I have been lucky enough to be a part of the Young Farmers Agri an Rural Affairs committee and, on November 20, we are having our second conference in the DoubleTree Hilton, in Dundee.

Last year's conference was fantastic, with a range of great talks and visits and an impressive line-up of sponsors who also contributed.

This year is no different with a fantastic weekend planned and I encourage any Young Farmers free that weekend to book your space for only £120 for the weekend, including accommodation, meals and farm visits and talks.

It is great to see that the Agri and Rural Affairs part of SAYFC has proved popular so far with various meetings throughout the year sharing knowledge.

Engaging with the issues facing our industry at an early stage will help the next generation of farmers prepare for an uncertain landscape.

With issues such as markets, exchange rates, government agri policy and land reform, it is vital that Young Farmers understand the implications of how these various factors influence their business and see that farming is more than just trying to grow as much as possible, although it does help.